Arrows to the Heart
by Courage Sun
Summary: Taiora Mimato Medieval. Their country was ruled by a malicious tyrant. He planned to stop him, while she was being forced to help him. They met by chance and now their paths are intertwined. Will sparks fly or will they fall victim to cupid's arrows?
1. Prologue

me: HELLO EVERYBODY!!! YaY!!! A NEW STORY!!! lol

**_Special announcement: _**Okay, well this chapter is a b-day present for my buddy iamkagomeiloveinuyasha!! HOORAY!!! HAPPY B-DAY!!! And you also get A BRAND NEW CAR!!!

A BRAND NEW CAR!!!!

DUDES!! WHERE'S THE BRAND NEW CAR!?!?!

Announcer dude: (whispers)

me: What do you mean the FBI ordered us to give it back! What is this "Stealing" of which you speak? I didn't steal it! (pouts) Okay, so I can't give you a brand new car...BUT THERE'S STILL THE NEW STORY!!! HOORAY!!!

Okay ya'll ENJOY!!!!

This is dedicated to my Terrorizing trio buddies!! YaY!!!!

**TTTTTTTTTTTT**

As far back as I can remember there have been tales of how wonderful our world once was. The King was fair and during the time of his rule life was peaceful and prosperious. Food was plentiful and poverty was rarely seen. Our world was a utopian civilization...or so I've been told. I have diffuiculty believing in this picture-perfect world when I have lived in it for so long.

The stories sound more like fairytales to me.

During the peak of life in our world the king unexpectedly passed away. Without an heir to claim the throne, our world was thrown into chaos.

Civil Wars were breaking out all over the country; sons were killing fathers, brothers were betraying brothers, blood and battles became common sights.

During the years following the king's death, rumors began floating about that there was a new becon of hope. A young man by the name of Ichijouji.

His intentions were said to be for the people, a peasant who just wanted to make things right with the world again. Being the only couragous fellow of the time he was immediatly coronated and peace was restored to us.

But, as it soon became known, his entire plot to gain the crown had been nothing but a scheme for power. He became a blood-thirsty tyrannt. He sent his armies to attack and pillage the towns until he was sure every soul feared him. He even renamed our world in his honor...I never knew what it was called before and those that do are too cowardly to say it. He ruled viciously for four years before he was certain that no one dared to rise against him. He married and had a son, the future heir to the Ichijouji kingdom.

This was the time I was born in.

Among the few towns left standing after Ichijouji took control was the peaceful Takenouchi kingdom, the town I was born and raised in (of course it had already been conqurered by the tyrants).

During the time of the War the Takenouchi kingdom was an oasis of beauty and peace amongst a world of chaos and fear, or so I've been told. Their grounds were green and fertile, their lakes clear as crystal, and their surrender was as quick and painless as they come.

It was near the beginning of the war when Ichijouji himself appeared at the doorstep of the Takenouchi kingdom. With his trademark cruel smile he offered the King and Queen two choices, the typical life or death question; "Surrender or die on the spot." The Queen was pregnant with their first child and fear had welled within both rulers. Bloody footprints followed Ichijouji where ever he went; towns were destroyed in his wake and gallons of innocent blood was spilt. They were petrified with uncertainty and did what they thought was best for their country and their unborn daughter. They surrendered.

Outrage followed this announcement. The citizens were shocked that their rulers would give up _their_ land without so much as a fight. Many rebellions followed and many lives were lost until finally the kingdom was as broken as all the others. After the surrender Ichijouji demanded rights to everything within the town; food, important natural resources, and weapons, leaving the town with next to nothing. It wasn't long until the town was divided into Districts. The Fourth and Third were the decaying outer regions of the town, the Second were those that made an average living, and the First District was the comfortable inner circle surrounding the castle where the rich folk lived. Needless to say, communication between the First and Fourth was unheard of and it was rare for any of the Districts to speak to one another.

My parents made an average paycheck and were able to support the three of us until my mom got pregnant with my sister. Doctors, I learned, were some of the greatest thieves of my time. Their medical procedures were so expensive that we gave them close to everything we owned just to insure that my mother would would survive the birth. We were soon reduced to nothing and lived on the outermost reaches of the Takenouchi kingdom in the Fourth District.

Life was excruciatingly difficult for the three of us. My father lost his job taking care of my mother and was constantly preforming odd jobs to afford dinner, while my mother, nearly reaching the end of her pregnancy tried selling some of her exotic dishes to passerbys. Even I, almost four years old, had extreme problems. I was bullied by most of the other kids, who were much bigger and older than I was. I would often come home covered in bruises and wincing from a black eye or two. It seemed as though life couldn't get any worse until my mother went into labor.

I remember the first time I held my little sister. It made everything that happened seem worth it. She was named Hikari and the name suited her well. It didn't matter how bad life got for me after she was brought into the world. She would greet me with her light brown eyes and cheery smile. We were as close as siblings could get, and remain to be. But for some reason fate always finds a way to turn everything around.

Hikari was only five years old at the time. She was busy chatting about the day she had with the little girl across the street when something was thrown through the window behind us. Glass scattered everywhere and we raced into our parents' room. The look they shared with one another still haunts me to this day. They told us to hide within my mother's wooden wardrobe (one of the few items she managed to keep, it belonged to her grandmother and was a dear possesion of her's). I remember hiding in the darkness for what felt like weeks until we heard voices. The door was wrenched open by unfamiliar men in black and blue uniforms and we were dragged kicking and screaming out of our house. We looked around and could figure out what happened.

It was a massacre.

Bodies were littering the dirt roads leading all the way into the Second District's cobblestone streets. Our parents were among them.

We were thrown into a steel cart with a group of other kids, all of varying ages. One of the men that apprehended my sister and I gave us a cruel smile before saying "Welcome to Hell."

From that moment only misfortune followed us.

We were taken to the Ichijouji kingdom where I lived out the remainder of my childhood. The years that followed are too crazy and painful to think about, but when I turned twelve I finally decided to do something about it. I made a few friends during those four years and we banded together and became an interesting gang of thieves. We started out with small goals; stealing a few slices of bread or getting away with snatching a pouch of coins. I didn't realize I was so good at it until we went for something bigger; a jewlery cart. Without a hitch we managed to rob the greedy bastard blind. With large sacks of riches on our backs we figured we needed a place to stash the stuff. Hikari gave us the idea. We needed someplace secret, that not many visit, so she suggested the ruins of the Fourth District in the Ichijouji kingdom.

According to one of our friends Ichijouji ordered the Third and Fourth Districts to be destroyed in his kingdom too. All around there were only a few skeletons of what once stood; a wall or two that withstood the flames, a pile of charred wood that may have once been support beams, broken glass and grey ash still made the dirt sparkle. It was a wasteland and it was highly unlikly for anyone to come out here since the roads went through town. Perfect.

We choose the home that was the most intact; four walls were still standing. There were cracks and small holes in the base but they were still stable, the door was missing and the glass for the windows was shattered beyond repair, but this shabby place screamed home. Our skills in thievery advanced as we stole more and more to ensure that we wouldn't go hungry, but as everything began piling up we soon realized we needed a place to store the riches. We dug a deep hole and installed a wooden floor with a secret door to conceal everthing.

To make a long story short, we expanded that secret hiding place into an entire cavern that runs miles beneth the Third and Fourth Districts. And just as our home expanded and our ambitions grew more and more adventurous, our little group grew into a powerful force of nineteen people. We've robbed an infanite number of nobles, dukes, aristocrats, and other royalty across the country. Because of our famed success I've gained a nickname from the royalty; the Prince of Thieves. I have to admit, these stuck-up royals can give their "villans" some pretty cool nicknames.

I'm a villan in proper society, no doubting it. I constantly hear rumors when I'm undercover that I kill children and kidnap women, and these insane theories make me roll my eyes. I've never killed anyone and the only one I plan to kill is Ken. As for kidnapping women...obviously whoever started that one has too much time on their hands. Some of my best friends are women and I know from experience that they are the most confusing type of creatures on the planet. So for now I'm happily single and plan to stay that way for a while.

Currently my main focus is our most dangerous plot yet; robbing the one place that took everything from us; Ichijouji's castle.


	2. Encounters with Maddness

me: HIYA EVERYONE!!! Okay, this update is a present for all of you since three days ago was my b-day!! YaY!!! I'M FINALLY 15!!! lol, (i'm like the youngest person in 9th grade, lol)

(growls) I TRIED updating on my actual b-day (4/12), but was experiencing technical difficulties and wouldn't let me submit the document!! (fumes)

Ehem, alrighty, well I'm not gonna waste your time today!!!

Reviewers: HOORAY!!!

me: (rolls eyes) ANYWAYZ!!! Help yourselves to cake and cookies!!! (points to a loooooong table with various sugary snacks )

This chapter is dedicated to my terrorizing trio!!! YaY!!!! YOU GUYS ROCK!!!

**IMPORTANT NOTE!!!: Okay y'all during this chappie, there are two different times going on. By that, I mean Taichi, Yamato, etc. are in the present, while Mimi, Sora, etc. are a few days earlier. This will become apparent towards the middle of this chapt. OkAy, NoW tHaT tHaT's OuTtA tHe WaY, DoN't GeT CoNfUsEd!!! hehe**

AGES!!! (i messed with them a bit )

Jyou, Michael: 19

Yamato, Ken: 18

Taichi, Sora, Mimi, Koushiro: 17

Catherine, Rika, Ryo, Miyako, Koji, Kouichi: 16

Hikari, Takeru, Daisuke, Takuya, Takato, Zoe: 15

Iori: 14

OKAY!!! Important stuff said and done!! NOW READ!!! lol, OH!! AND REVIEW!!!

TTTTTTTTTTTT

Dawn was rising on the horizon. Pastel pinks and purples were already beginning their task of chasing away the darkness in preparation for the sun's arrival, while the birds were all singing sweet symphonies to greet the light. Only the brightest of stars still twinkled in the rapidly approaching morning and one by one the lighted windows in town began to fade.

Within the town citizens were already preparing for another busy day; Wives were preparing meals for their families, Husbands were gathering the essentials for their respected jobs, and children were rubbing the sleep from their eyes as they grudgingly got out of bed to assist their families in the start of a new day.

A cloaked young man smirked at the oblivious scene. These people honestly had no idea...

He walked along the rooftops with cat-like ease, his sharp eyes glancing around for anything interesting. Looming before him the grand Ichijouji Castle stared down at the small town, numerous black eyes watching the movements of everyone and everything. It was a typical, stereotype tyrant castle; black stone with fearsome gargoyles occupying every available space, a huge wall blocking all entry with sinister metal spikes threatening to impale those that dared to try and climb over, thousands of guards marching around the perimeter, and barred windows and doors.Every possible safety precaution was taken to assure the King and his family that they were isolated from the citizens. But the King added a few _homey_ touches here and there, the corpse of a particularly significant enemy hanging by it's neck from a bell tower, or the gruesome sight of miscellaneous torture devices with fresh blood still staining the object.

No one had ever broken in and lived to tell the tale and that's what made it sound all the more inviting to him. Adventure, excitement, that rush of adrenaline when metal clashes on metal! He lived for it. It was the most exhilarating experience that was so addicting in its own way...and the rewards weren't half bad either.

He reached for a small brown leather pouch on his belt buckle and tossed it up and down. The sound of the coins clinking together made him smile. He clutched the pouch before jumping off the ledge and landing in front of a bakery where an entrancing aroma of breads and cakes immediately seized him from the streets.

He smiled as he walked through the doorway and pulled the hood from his face.

"Taichi darling!"

"Hello Mrs. Matsuki." he greeted. (A/N: For those of you that don't know, she's Takato's mom, but i have absolutely no idea what her personality is like so bear with me)

Mie Matsuki placed the dough she had currently been kneading on a cutting board and walked over to give him a bone-crushing hug. "How are you sweetie? And how is my Takato fairing?"

"I've been fine and Takato's great." Taichi smiled. Mie smiled and released her "son"  
before breaking into a fit of giggles. "Oh! I'm sorry Taichi, I always forget that I'm covered with flour all day."

Taichi laughed as he brushed the white specks from his brown cloak. "Don't worry about it, after four years I've gotten used to it."

"I don't doubt it." she said smiling with a motherly affection. Taichi and his sister stumbled upon her door -- literally -- about four years ago. They were orphaned and suffering from lack of nutrition when she took them in and cared for them. Their pasts were still a mystery to her but she didn't press the matter anymore than needed. Takato adored them both and, although she knew she could never replace their mother, she was glad that they accepted her as a member of their small family.

"I brought something for you Mrs. Matsuki." he grinned, dangling the pouch before her eyes.

She gasped before snatching it from him. She tested the weight in her palm before giving him a sharp look, "Taichi, must this," she lowered her voice to barely a whisper, "Prince of Thieves fiasco continue?"

Taichi smiled mischievously, "Yes."

She sighed, "Taichi, I appreciate this, I really do. But King Ichijouji is getting closer to catching you and I don't want you or Hikari getting hurt again. I know that bastard killed your parents and I don't want the same fate to befall you or anyone else. Plus, we both know the Prince won't stop until you've been caught, he's gotten pretty obsessed with your capture since you're the only _real _threat he has."

"Mrs. Matsuki...you're the closest thing to a mother I have, and I'm glad that you worry about me and Kari so much, but Ken is no where _near_ catching me. You can't always believe everything you hear." He winked before giving her a quick hug. "I'll tell Takato to stop by later, he's out running...errands, and will be back shortly."

"Yea right. Errands?" she rolled her eyes and gave him a disbelieving look. "Alright then, you can go, but don't do anything stupid for a while! Wait until the guards are off your trail and you're no longer the talk of the towns."

He paused in the doorway and grinned over his shoulder, "When are we _not_ the talk of the towns? Besides, we won't be able to do anything interesting until Ken returns from the Takenouchi Kingdom, so you have nothing to worry about...for the time being."

"Well if you or any of your lovely friends get caught Ken will be the least of your worries." she threatened with the smallest hint of a smile.

Tai laughed before pulling his hood up and exiting the shop.

TTTTTTTTTTTT

"Ow!!"

"Oh! I'm sorry Sora, but if you would _please_ stand still. Geez, It's a miracle that's the only the _first_ time I've poked you."

"I'm sorry Meems, you know how much I hate these...these..._things_!"

Mimi laughed, "They're called _dresses_ Milady."

"Well who in their right mind would choose to wear one of these things?"

Mimi looked up from the hem of the dress and stood up with her hands on her hips, "Well, I must be out of my mind then." She motioned to the simple light pink dress she was wearing.

Sora laughed, "Forgive me Mimi."

Mimi smiled before stepping back a few paces. "I think you'll like the new alterations Sora, it's not so plain anymore. You'll be sure to catch every man's eye wearing this."

Sora smiled and jumped off of the chair and walked toward a full length mirror, but as soon as she caught the reflection her smile vanished. "Thank you Mimi." The fabric was a beautiful sky blue that hugged her curves, the sleeves were white and billowed around her arms gracefully, and a silver linked belt with large round sapphires filling the links hung around her hips at a slight angle.

Mimi's brilliant smile faltered a bit upon hearing Sora's tone. "Sora, I know how much you hate dresses, but you sound even more depressed than usual." She took Sora's arm and they both plopped down on a comfortable white couch.

"It's nothing Mimi, really." Sora said smiling.

"Sora, we've been best friends since we were thirteen, you can't put anything past me." she said smirking.

"Mimi, really, it's no big deal."

Mimi crossed her arms over her chest stubbornly, giving Sora the most disbelieving look she could muster on her pretty face. Sora sighed, realizing Mimi wasn't about to drop the subject. She could already tell Mimi was prepared to annoy her all day in order to get Sora to confess what was bothering her. Deciding to save herself from future pestering, she caved. "It's my parents! They're forcing me to get married!"

"I thought you wanted to get married?"

"I do! But..."

"You want to wait for your Prince Charming?" Mimi dramatically placed the back of her hand over her forehead and swooned.

Sora laughed and kicked off her heels. "Am I really that obvious?"

Mimi giggled. "I'm afraid so. Poor Sora, she wants to live out the life of a fairy tale princess and instead is trapped in the wretched world of reality. Of course that doesn't necessarily mean you won't find true love...but a Prince Charming character is what every girl looks for."

"It sounds so hopeless when you say it like that." Sora frowned

"It's not hopeless," Mimi insisted. "He's out there somewhere, you've just got to look for him and snatch him before every other girl does."

"Easy for you to say. You've already found _your_ Prince Charming."

Mimi blushed. "I suppose you could call him that. He's definitely the man of my dreams."

"So are you planning on sending him another letter today? I wouldn't be surprised if you slept with the letter you received yesterday."

Mimi's smile was bright enough to light up the whole castle. "Yes, I'm going to meet the messenger tonight." She grinned, "Sora, why don't you come with me! Get out of this stuffy palace for a little while. Ooh! There's this wonderful shop we could stop in on our way back! They have the most beautiful accessories in all of Takenouchi!"

"Meems, I wish I could but the Heir to the Ichijouji Kingdom is arriving tonight and I have to be here."

Mimi pouted, "Aww! Sora you're no fun!"

Sora looked offended. "No fun? _Me_? No way!"

Mimi grinned. "When we were younger _you _would've been the one suggesting that we sneak out, regardless of whom you were supposed to meet."

"Well...I...ummm..." Not able to think up a good comeback Sora picked up one of the pillows and hit the side of her best friend's head with it. Mimi gasped before grabbing her own weapon and smacking Sora in the face. Feathers flew everywhere as blows were traded back and forth and squeals of laughter escaped both young women.

"Sora Takenouchi!" The duo froze and turned toward the door where a cluster of adults were standing. "What in heaven's name are you doing!"

Sora and Mimi shared a quick look before scurrying toward Lady Takenouchi. "Hello mother." Sora said slowly, plucking several loose feathers from her hair and trying to make herself look presentable.

"Good afternoon Your Highness," Mimi said curtsying before the fuming parent and female ruler, also trying to straighten up.

Lady Takenouchi spun on her heels to address the people behind her, "I offer my deepest apologies Your Highness, obviously my daughter hadn't received news of your arrival."

"So it seems. Perhaps we should continue the tour and give these young ladies a chance to...freshen up."

Lady Takenouchi nodded quickly before following them out of Sora's bed chambers. She glanced over her shoulder to give her daughter a furious look before shutting the door behind her.

"Mimi."

"Yes?"

"That was one of my mother's infamous "you're dead" glares, wasn't it."

"I'm afraid so."

Sora groaned and fell backwards onto her bed.

TTTTTTTTTTT

"Koushiro!"

Koushiro winced. That voice. He knew that voice. And from the tone of that voice, he was about to receive an earful. Sighing, his placed a bookmark between the pages he was reading and placed it on the side table beside the chair he was lounging in.

About five seconds later the door slammed open unceremoniously.

"Good evening Hikari." he said calmly.

"Spare me the polite greetings Koushiro. Where is he?" Hikari demanded.

"He? I'm sorry but I don't know which "he" you're referring to."

"Koushiro." she said threateningly.

He sighed again, "Perhaps if you asked a little nicer I might be willing to share what I know about whomever it is you're talking about."

Hikari glared at him for a moment before sighing, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped like that. But I just can't believe he's gone again! Where does he go when he vanishes like this?"

Koushiro smiled, "Kari, it's understandable that you're worried about him, but you have to remember that he can take care of himself...for the most part. As for where he is, I'm guessing he went out to deliver financial aid to the Second District again. There were rumors flying about this morning that the King was planning one of his infamous tax collections when he returns."

She sighed again and plopped into one of the welcoming chairs before a crackling fire. "I know he can take care of himself. He's been taking care of _both_ of us for years...I guess this new plan of his just has me nervous."

"If it makes you feel any better, I know for a fact that you're not the only one who's nervous. I myself am a little anxious to get this over with."

Hikari sighed "I tried to convince him that this new scheme is too dangerous. I mean we could all get captured, or worse. What if they hurt-"

"Kari, relax. He's been on the executioner's list for a long time, once he's been captured it's sure to be a big deal. They'll make it public, and might even go as far as having it during Ken and his bride's rehearsal wedding."

This bit of information caught Hikari's attention. "He's found a bride! Who in their right mind would ever consider such a distasteful arrangement?!"

"Ken _is_, for lack of a better choice of words, a hell damned son of a bitch, but he's also a bachelor with wealth and power beyond imagine. A temptation that many families can't resist, even if their daughter can't stand him."

Hikari shook her head sadly, "Money corrupts everything. I'm glad we're not greedy like that."

Koushiro smiled. "I agree, but if we had more it would definitely make our lives a bit easier."

Hikari nodded numbly, her thoughts still on their previous topic. "I hope he knows what he's doing."

Knowing that she wasn't talking about Ken he started laughing. "Kari, you should know by now that he _never_ knows what he's doing."

Hikari giggled, he was right after all. Taichi never knew what he was getting into until he was in too deep, but he always found a way to get out of it with barely a scratch. "Izzy, there have been rumors spreading around that Taichi is planning something else along with his crazy scheme. You wouldn't happen to know if these rumors hold any truth would you?"

Koushiro raised an eyebrow, "Honestly Kari, you shouldn't believe everything you hear. And rumors are the worst form of gossip and should be ignored."

"So...you don't know if Taichi's planning something?"

"That's precisely what I'm saying. If Taichi is planing something I haven't heard anything."

Hikari nodded slowly. There was a moment of comfortable silence between the two before a light bulb seemed to go off in Hikari's head. "Oh! Izzy, I almost forgot! Iori wants to see you immediately."

Koushiro cocked his head slightly, "What for?"

"Well he_ is_ your apprentice. I'm guessing he needs to ask you something, or maybe he simply wants to spend time with his idol."

Koushiro smiled. Iori was a great kid and a wonderful apprentice; always eager to learn whatever he was willing to teach. Iori reminded him of himself at that age. "I don't suppose I'll ever finish this book, will I?"

Hikari grinned, "Izzy, you've been in this group for how long, and you still think that you can get a moment's peace?"

"You'd think I would have learned by now." He sighed and reluctantly rose out of his comfortable chair, Hikari following suit. He walked past his younger friend and paused in the doorway, "Coming Kari?"

She smiled, "In a minute. I hope you don't mind, but I was hoping to find a certain...book."

"Well you've come to the right place," Koushiro smiled and motioned to the thousands of books lining the walls. "But I wouldn't get anything out of place or Miyako will have your head."

Hikari nodded, "Trust me, I doubt even my brother would dare to get her angry." Koushiro laughed as he walked out of the library and shut the door with a soft click. The moment the door was latched Hikari's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Come now Koushiro, my brother wouldn't leave you in the dark about _anything_." She rushed over to the table and leafed through the book he had been reading. "Nothing." She closed her eyes and leaned against one of the hundreds of bookcases. "Think Kari. If Taichi was trying to keep something from you and he told Koushiro and Yamato, where would they hide the plans..." Her eyes scanned the warm room. _Anything_ could be hiding whatever she was looking for.

This wasn't going to be easy.

She knew from schematics and other items of great value that this room would be the ideal place to hide something; there were dozens of passageways leading to various secret rooms, the books themselves would be able to hide anything slim enough to place between two pages out of millions of others, it was one of the smallest rooms so therefore wouldn't be combed for anything valuable, and it was located in the hallway where all elite members lived. Bottom line: it had alot of reasons for Hikari to suspect it to be hiding something.

She tapped the side of her chin, she had to think like her brother and her brother's best friends.

_I'm doomed! _

This was a feat that she doubted even _she_ could accomplish. Her brother was, at times, extreamly immature, but he earned his title by his wits and clever way of thinking. He wasn't the genius Koushiro was, but his IQ was definatly high on the charts. Yamato had a few of Taichi's traits, such as his bravery and cunning nature, but he was very stratigic and often wouldn't risk making a move that he hadn't planned thouroughly. He was probably the most mysterious of the group as well since only a select few knew anything about his past. And the final member of the trio was Koushiro and he was an absolute genius! Always contemplating about something, and with every new plan he could calculate every possible case scenario that had a high percentage of happening in about five minutes after being informed.

With all these amazing traits, the trio made a powerful team and she almost pitied the Ichijoujis at times when they had to go up against the powerful threesome...almost.

She groaned, she would've asked Takeru or Daisuke to help her rummage through this room, but Takeru was on an important assignment at the moment, and if she asked Daisuke he'd be too busy staring at her to be of any use. Until Takeru returned she had nothing to do but poke around trying to find out what the older members were keeping from everyone else.

She was positive they were planning something else along with their newest rebellion act, and if they were keeping it from everyone else it implied that no one was going to like it. So she assumed it had something to do with her brother, especially since it was being kept from her. Her curiousity was beginning to get the better of her and she was determined to uncover what they were hiding from her and Takeru.

She walked between the sky high bookcases, keeping her keen eyes on the lookout for anything suspicious. She had only a faint idea of where they would keep their plans. She stopped in front of the adventure/romance novels, which were some of the best books in the library and some of her personal favorites; (_A/N: These three stories actually exist on this website, and are some of THE best on the entire site. You guys should definitely check them out, all are Taiora of course, look at the bottom for more info_) "By the Power of the Stars", "My Father's Crown", "Sorry Doesn't Cut it", and thousands of others. This was where she and her brother would spend quality time together when they were little, amongst the thousands of other adventurers who dared to walk into the unknown and make a difference, like themselves.

Whatever crazed plan they thought up would be kept around here somewhere. Her eyes traveled over the spines, looking for one that didn't fit with the rest. She placed her hand on one of the shelves and ran her hand down the row, with each new title came a new memory that brought a small smile to her lips.

Koushiro was the one who got them interested in books. When they first met him he was a young, wealthy scholar with an IQ higher than anyone of their time, but even with all the praise and awe that he was presented with he wasn't happy. He didn't have any _real_ friends, and his family was slaughtered by Ichijouji's men when he was ten, so he engrossed himself within the stories kept within the pages of books. The characters were his best friends and their families were his too. Hikari often wondered why he didn't try making new friends, but she knew from experience that honorable and trustworthy people were becoming a dying breed. Koushiro had quite a bit of inheritance when his parents died and anyone from this century would've liked to take advantage of his kindness. Too bad his intellect kept him from falling for any of their tricks.

She stopped again and her eyes traveled from the floor to the top of the bookcase and an idea illuminated her thoughts. "Nice try Tai, but you'll have to be smarter than that." She gingerly placed her foot on the lowest shelf, testing to see if they would support her weight. When she was convinced that she wouldn't come crashing to the ground she grasped the shelf above her and began scaling the mahogany cases. With cat-like ease she managed to get to the top and a sly smile found its way upon her angelic features. Lifting herself up, she knelt on the top of the case and grinned at what was resting in front of her knees; a small golden box with a sun molded into the gleaming metal. This definitely belonged to Taichi.

Without a moments hesitation she pulled it towards her and opened the latch that kept it shut. "Yes!" Inside was a rich red velvet interior with a rolled up piece of parchment being the sole inhabitant of the box. Smirking with victory she unrolled the paper and began reading the elegant writing, but as her eyes read each line her smile began fading.

She crumpled the paper in her palms and scowled. "Damn him."

She could practically hear him mocking her through the words on the paper. "Nice Try Kari, but Did You Honestly Expect Me to be so Predictable." Ooooh, she was going to kill him.

"How's the weather up there?"

Hikari froze. "Hehe, Yamato! What are you doing back so early?"

Yamato smirked, "I think the real question is why are you on top of that bookcase?"

"I'm...meditating?"

His smirk increased at this response. "Sometimes it scares me that you and Taichi can think so much alike."

"We _are_ related." she grinned, throwing her legs over the side. Yamato smiled and held his arms toward her, which she jumped into. "Thanks."

"No problem." He smiled before turning into "older brother" mode. "Kari, were you sneaking around trying to find out what we're doing?"

Hikari shifted uneasily under his harsh gaze. "Well...I wasn't really sneaking since you found me --"

"Kari." His arms were crossed over his chest and his voice was daring her to try and lie out of this one.

She sighed, "Okay, I was, but you can't blame me! Everyone's wondering what you guys are planning. Since when have you three kept secrets from everyone else anyway!?!"

Yamato smiled reassuringly, "We're not keeping it a secret. We're still not sure if we're going to go through with it yet."

"But what is "it"? What is this plan?" Hikari demanded.

Yamato rolled his eyes, "If you want to know so bad, then go ask Taichi."

"You know what, I will!" She stated with determination.

"Ask me what?"

Hikari cringed. She glanced over at Yamato who was wearing an amused smirk. _Curse his timing_! "Hey Tai!"

Taichi smiled and joined their conversation. He slung an arm around Hikari's shoulders and gave her a quick hug. "So what were you going to ask me?"

She cast a quick glare towards Yamato who was snickering in the background. "Well...I uh...wanted to ask you... - "

Taichi smirked knowingly, "Let me guess. Your curiosity got the better of you and you just _had_ to know what was being kept on top of the bookcases other than dust, which is where Yamato found you, you fell, he caught you, and now the two of you are having a laugh about it, but you ended up spraining something or other and you need to ask me where I keep the cheap bandages."

Hikari glared at this sarcastic statement. He knew exactly what just happened. It was times such as these, when her brother was so immature, that made her wonder how he was able to earn the title "Prince of Thieves". But she was glad that he only acted like the prince leader when times demanded it, otherwise he was just Tai, her fun-loving brother and the life of the party. It was so strange...it was almost like he was two people.

"Did you like the note I left you?" Taichi asked smirking.

Hikari pointed a finger at his chest, "One day Taichi, _I_ will be the one outsmarting _you_. And it will I who knocks you off your throne and drain you of your cockiness."

"I'm shaking." Taichi said mischievously. He then turned to Yamato, "Matt, have you seen Daisuke anywhere? I need to ask him something, but I can't find him anywhere. I thought if I found Kari he'd only be two steps behind, but by the look of things he hasn't set foot in here yet."

"What makes you say that?" Yamato asked.

"Miyako isn't fixing anything."

Hikari smiled. "I think I saw him in the infirmary. Something about drinking unstable chemicals? Apparently someone started a rumor that all water supplies were contaminated with it."

Yamato looked at her confused, "But...the water supplies are fine...that doesn't make -- "

"Kari you're horrible!" Taichi laughed. "You actually made him believe that!"

"I know it was cruel, but he was driving me nuts! I love Davis but since Takeru wasn't here he wouldn't leave me alone."

"Then you're coming with me." Taichi stated. He grabbed her hand and proceeded towards the door, glancing over his shoulder only once, "Coming Matt?"

"Nah. I need to speak to Izzy about the attack. We still have some problems that need to be worked out."

"Have fun." Taichi shrugged.

Yamato chuckled and shook his head as the siblings rounded the corner, Hikari protesting as she was dragged towards the infirmary. "I doubt those two will ever change."

TTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Lord Takenouchi cleared his throat irritably. "Sora, sit up straight, these visitors are among the most important nobles in the Ichijouji kingdom! Is your greatest goal in life to embarrass your family's good name!"

Sora rolled her eyes in reply but rose out of her slouching position and adopted the stereotype stance of an important young lady. She gave her father a dark look as she fidgeted with the ensemble she was forced to wear. The same dress she had been wearing earlier.

Dress.

The five letter word that made Sora cringe every time she heard it. No matter how long she argued with her mother or how convincing her testimonies were with her father she was still forced to wear one of the accursed articles of clothing.

"Sora." her father warned. "I will not tolerate any misbehaving tonight."

"I still don't understand why I must be apart of your boring meetings." Sora stated.

The Lord's eyes softened. "Sora, you know that one day I will not be here and I want you to know the ins and outs of the kingdom before that time comes. And after your wreckless behavior earlier today I think the least you can do is show up."

Sora rolled her eyes, "But father, Mimi and I were only having fun! And I honestly don't care about the "ins and outs of the kingdom"!!"

Lord Takenouchi sighed and turned his attention away from his stubborn daughter. _What is it with teenagers anyway... _

Silver trumpets began bellowing their musical shrieks across the throne room, announcing the arrival of someone extremely important. Sora placed her hands to her temples and groaned. She hated those stupid excuses for musical instruments.

Sora wasn't normally this irritable or this annoyed with her family. She loved them dearly and was usually the light of the household; always smiling and laughing. But today was different. Sora knew exactly why her father asked her to partake in this meeting.

Rumor had it that Prince Ken Ichijouji was looking for a wealthy bride that was born into an important family. Her father wanted her to live a happy life with someone who would have what it takes to take care of her; money and power.

She slowly shook her head, she was grateful for her father's love but...marriage seemed like a prison sentence to a young woman at the age of 17.

Lord Takenouchi rose from his seat when the doors opened to reveal a small cluster of people. "Welcome Your Highness, to our wonderful kingdom."

King Ichijouji smiled and took the hand of Lord Takenouchi and shook it firmly. "It was gracious to have us at such short notice."

"No trouble at all." Lord Takenouchi replied. "May I introduce my beautiful daughter Sora Takenouchi."

Sora forced a smile and held back all her pride to curtsy to the King. "A pleasure Your Highness."

King Ichijouji smiled broadly and turned to the young man behind him. "And may I introduce my son Prince Ken." Ken bowed gracefully toward the young lady before allowing his eyes to wander the surroundings.

"Well Sora, why don't you give the Prince a tour of our home, I'm sure after the long ride he wouldn't mind stretching his legs a bit."

Sora narrowed her eyes in the direction of her father before plastering the fake smile on her mouth again, "Of course father, I would _love_ to. Please follow me _Your Highness_."

Lord Takenouchi's mouth tightened into a thin line when he heard the sarcasm, but luckily it looked as though the two royals were oblivious to the tone in his daughter's voice.

Sora stormed up the stairs angrily, her heels slamming against the floor and creating loud echos throughout the hallway. She paused and spun around, remembering she was giving a tour, "This," she motioned to the long corridor, "is a hallway. You follow so far?"

Ken's eyes narrowed, allowing his anger to boil he walked up to her and grasped her arm.

"Hey let gommhp --" Her mouth was silenced by his hand.

"You might think you have everyone fooled with your kindness, _princess_, but I'm not fooled by it. I can tell you're going to be one tough spirit to break," He smirked as she struggled violently in his iron grip. He pulled her towards him roughly and whispered in her ear, "But I'm up for the challenge."

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

"You're mad!!"

"Geez Kar I thought after all these years you would've figured that out by now."

"Tai! I knew you were crazy before but...this! You're mad!"

"Yes, you've already said that...twice if I'm not mistaken." He rolled his eyes as he ran up a staircase leading towards the exit, Hikari at his heels.  
"Tai this will all lead to disaster! And what will Ken do when he's caught you again!"  
"Kill me."   
"Exactly!"  
Taichi spun around until he was face-to-face with her. "That's what I'm hoping he'll do." With another mysterious smile he began scaling the stairs again, leaving Hikari more confused than she already was.  
"Why the hell would you want him to kill you?!?"  
"Trust me Kari, you'll find out soon enough." He stopped at the base of the secret entrance and pulled the hood over his eyes. Hikari still looked like she was planning on throwing several more insults to get him to change his mind but was debating on which ones would be appropriate for this situation. Taichi sighed and put his hands on her shoulders, "Trust me Kari. Have I ever steered you wrong before?" Hikari opened her mouth to reply but Taichi quickly interrupted, "You know what, don't answer that. But I know what I'm doing this time, so relax." He smiled as he backed away. He grasped the small access ladder that was kept against one of the dirt walls and climbed up the creaking steps. He paused before slowly lifting the hatch. When the surroundings checked out he threw the trap door upward and lifted himself through the sun-filled shaft. Before slamming it shut he looked back at his sister, who was standing with her arms stubbornly crossed over her chest. "I'll be fine." he reassured again.  
The corners of her mouth lifted slightly as she repeated the phrase again. "You're mad."  
He smiled, "It takes a mad man to defeat a mad man." 

TTTTTTTTTTTTTT

"Sora! Sora please open up! It's me, Mimi."  
Her persistent effort was ignored yet again as the door stayed firmly locked.  
The young woman sighed before leaning her back against the door and sliding into a sitting position. "I can be stubborn too you know!" she yelled through the oak door. Still no reply. "Fine! I'll just sit out here until you decide to open up! And when I miss meeting the messenger you'll have that eating away at your conscience because you wouldn't open the damn doWAHH!!" She stumbled backwards from the sudden loss of support and met the eyes of her best friend from her position on her back. Sora was desperately trying to suppress her laughter and failing miserably while Mimi rolled onto her stomach and pushed herself into a sitting position. "Well you could've warned me you were going to open the door." Sora was now leaning against the door, clutching her stomach from laughing so hard.  
"I'm sorry Meems!" she said between bellows of laughter. "But you should've seen your face!" Mimi smiled and soon found herself laughing at the hilarity of the situation, she could only imagine the shock portrayed on her face. Sora quickly offered a hand to her best friend and she gratefully took it, both still trying to catch their breath. Mimi quickly straightened her pink dress and plucked a few pieces of dust from the fall and walked into Sora's bedroom before she was locked out again.  
She walked over to the elegant four poster bed and sat at the edge, her hands resting in her lap and one foot tucked behind the other in a very appropriate lady-like sitting position, while Sora leaped on the bed resting her chin in her palms, she bent her legs at the knee and began swinging her feet back and forth to an unknown rhythm.  
"So. Why did you lock me out??"  
Sora's feet stopped swinging and her face fell.  
Noticing this immediate change in her friend she quickly scooted closer and placed a delicate, comforting hand on her shoulder. It shook under her gentle touch and Mimi felt her heart wrench at the sight of her best friend with tears running down her face.  
"Oh no Sora, please don't cry. Please. It can't be that bad. Oh Sora you know how much I hate it when you cry."  
Sora stubbornly wiped her tears away, but no matter how hard she tried she couldn't cease the flow.  
"This wouldn't have anything to do with that Prince guy would it?" Mimi demanded. Sora nodded weakly, still trying to regain her composure.  
"Why that pompous, egotistical little brat! I swear! You give a kid a country and he thinks he rules the world! I have half a mind to go down there and teach that little punk a lesson right now!"  
"Mimi."   
"He'll rue the day he messed with my best friend, no doubt about it! You don't mess with _my_ friends and get away with it, no ma'am, not Mimi Tachikawa's friends!  
"Mimi."  
"I'll crush that little worm beneath these designer shoes then I'll --"  
"MIMI!!"  
"What!"  
Sora smiled. "You don't even know what he did yet."  
"Sora, if it's got you this upset it has to be bad. I've only seen you cry a handful of times." She took a deep cleansing breath and returned to her seat besides Sora. "But...now that you mention it. What did he do?"  
Sora felt anger swell within her chest, blocking out all her previous sadness and self-pity. "My father wants me to marry him, and I can tell that Ken has no intention of loving me in an _honorable_ way."  
Mimi's eyes widened at this. She had expected something along the lines of an awful insult, or perhaps she got into another fight with her father because of something the Prince said, but that was probably just her optimism speaking. Now that she thought about it, Sora crying over an insult was highly unlikely, and if she'd gotten in a fight with her father the first thing she'd want to do is rant all about it.  
Rage had boiled up inside her again and she was about to begin another string of insulting statements when Sora interrupted her.  
"Meems, I forgot to mention the good news that comes out of this."

"There's good news?" Mimi asked, her voice still teetering on the edge of controlled anger and righteous fury.

Sora smiled, "He's invited my father and I to attend a ball." Mimi stared blankly at her, obviously not understanding how this was a good thing. Sora's smile broadened, "In Ichijouji."

Mimi's eyes grew impossibly large. "Ichijouji!!" She squealed and jumped to her feet, hopping up and down in place. "I can see him!! And all my other friends!! And my family!! Oh I've missed them so much!" She ran over to her best friend and hugged her around the shoulders. "Oh Sora you have no idea how much this means to me!"

"I think I've got an idea."

"Really? How?"

"You're squeezing me too tight...can't...breathe."

"Oh my gosh! I'm sorry! I guess all the excitement has gotten the better of me."

Sora smiled. "So aren't you going to meet the letter carrier? He'll probably be leaving soon and I'm sure you'll want to inform everyone of your arrival."  
Mimi looked flabbergasted as their earlier conversation rushed back into her mind. "Now? Of course not!" Catching her harsh choice of words she quickly corrected herself, "Well...uh...what I mean by that is, I'm not going to leave you here when you need me!"  
Sora smiled kindly, "Meems, I'm sure your family and friends will anxiously be awaiting your message. Besides, I can handle myself if that bastard of a Prince decides to come back."  
Mimi considered this. "Well, I'll go, but OH! Sora won't you please come with me! It'll be completely, utterly, and entirely boring if I were to go alone!" She clapsed her hands together as if she were praying to the God/Goddess of hope and gave the best lost-puppy-dog look she could muster. "Pleeeeeeease...We could take the horses and ride through the country side, you know how much you love doing that, and maybe if we have enough time we could..." she resisted the urge to roll her eyes as she named the store that Sora had particular interest in, "the Blacksmith's Forge."

Sora's eyes instantly lit up, "Really!" Mimi nodded slowly. She had no idea why her friend had such a crazed obsession with weaponry, but being where she was from she knew fine quality when she saw it and the "Blacksmith's Forge" was well-known to all trained in the art of the metal craft. Yes, girly Mimi knew a bit about swords and the like, but living in their time it was customary to know the difference between a fine quality sword and junk metal, the difference could possibly save your life. But although swords bored her, she was fascinated with daggers, and, even though she'd never admit it aloud, she was eager to look at the new supply of knives the blacksmith recently forged.

"Yes, because I know my suffering will cheer you up. Plus, there are plenty of stores I can drag you into as payback."

Sora considered this for a moment. _I'll suffer for a little while, but I'll get to look at all the beautiful swords! It's worth it! _"You've got yourself a deal Mimi Tachikawa. Let's get out of here."

TTTTTTTTTTT

"Matt! MATT!!"

"Quit whining, you're coming with me whether you like it or not!"

"But I've got to meet --"

"That will just have to wait. What's more important? Killing Ken or assisting your best friend."

Taichi opened his mouth to respond, but Yamato quickly intervened. "Don't answer that!" Taichi smirked before remembering his current predicament. "Yamato I've got to meet the girl that's going to help us with," he lowered his voice "you know what!" Taichi pouted, he could swear Yamato was waiting for him just outside the hideout and "_coincidently_ showed up to drag him across town when he had important business to attend to.

"You have all day to talk to her." A sly smile creeped upon Yamato's mouth as a witty comment came to mind. "I'm sure she'll wait for _you_ all day."

Taichi glared at him from his only visible eye, his cloak was pulled around him and the hood shadowed half his face. "And what do you mean by that?"

Yamato smirked, "Oh I think you know."

A faint blush stained his cheeks, Yamato was one of the few that could turn the tables on him so easily.

Yamato smirked when a comeback wasn't replied. He enjoyed winning their battles of wit.

"You need to quit reading Miyako's romance novels."

Yamato cringed, so their duel wasn't over yet. He spun around to meet the eyes of his rival, "There's plenty of action in those books!" As soon as he said it he realized it was a mistake. Taichi's grin widened, but Yamato didn't give him the chance to make a remark, "Shut up. Or I'll kick your ass."

Taichi laughed and walked in front of him, grinning as he walked backwards to keep his eyes on his friend. "And how exactly do you plan on doing that?"

Yamato smirked, "Do you honestly want to test me?"

Taichi shrugged, "I don't see why not. After all, I test everyone else, I don't see anything wrong with testing you too."

Yamato's grin broadened, "Fine. I'll give you a five second head start."

Taichi's eyes narrowed with determination as he raced off.

Yamato silently counted, keeping his eyes glued to the hooded figure. This was how he managed to lose the more inexperienced members and Yamato wasn't about to fall for this technique.

Taichi knew this however and ducked down one of the labyrinth like alleys. Catching sight of a low window ledge he leaped onto several barrels of ale and pulled himself onto the narrow strip of stone. He balanced with ease and glanced back just in time to see his opponent pause before the alley. He pressed his back against the window behind him and watched his blonde friend.

Yamato's brows were furrowed as he scanned the nearby bins and barrels. If Taichi chose the direction ahead he would've been able to catch at least a glimpse of him, which meant he was around here. He knew Taichi's favorite means of travel were the rooftops, but Taichi would expect him to think of that so there had to be other options. Looking up, he immediately noticed that there were several darkened windows on either side of the street. Covered in dust and water streaks, they were the perfect hiding spot for Taichi.

He jumped onto the barrels and stopped dead in his tracks. Taichi was standing on the ledge, but apparently he forgot about their little "game". "Taichi what are you --"

Taichi gave him an icy glare that stopped Yamato in his tracks.

Yamato noticed how stiffly he was standing against that window and realized something important must be being discussed behind that thin sheet of glass. He took a step forward, anxious to hear what was so intriguing that it would put a stop to a test. Emergency situations were the only things that stopped important field tests, it had only occurred twice and both involved a pair getting too close to their hideout, who later joined the Thieves.

Taichi held up his hand. He couldn't risk being exposed, and if Yamato appeared it would definitely arouse suspicion. Yamato nodded curtly and jumped to the ground, trying to act as casual as he could so passersby wouldn't suspect anything out of the ordinary. He glanced up and noticed that Taichi's mouth now had a triumphant smirk plastered upon it.

Taichi jumped down from his perch and dropped before Yamato. "I just overheard some...promising information."

Yamato immediately noticed the tone of his friend's voice, the "people-are-so-stupid" amusement that always leaked through his lips whenever he overheard morons discussing something intriguing in a public place. "Promising? And just how promising would that be?" he questioned with a wolf-like smile.

"You'll love this Yamato, but I don't plan on making their mistake," he motioned to the window, "so we'll discuss this tonight at dinner. For now, you still have a test to pass."

"Taichi, you're not serious! You want to continue the test after an interruption like _that_?!"

A devious smirk found it's way onto the Prince's face as he reached for something behind his back. "That's too bad Matt, since, if you don't complete your test, you won't receive the letter from your lady fair."

Yamato blinked a few times before narrowing his eyes, "You have my letter!?!" Taichi chuckled as he tauntingly waved the letter at his friend, causing a heavenly aroma to reach Yamato and confirm his fears. "Th-That's just cruel!"

Taichi shrugged, "So what're you going to do about it?"

Yamato's eyes narrowed and his hand reached forward to snatch the treasured item from his friend's grasp, but Taichi sidestepped and easily avoided his outstretched hand, "Oh! So close! But not close enough."

"Taichi," Yamato growled. "Give me my letter." Any normal person would've sensed the hostility coming from his voice and notice the death glares protruding from his eyes and would've surrendered the letter that instant and offered a lovely gift basket in exchange for not kicking their ass, but Taichi wasn't exactly normal...

"No." Taichi stepped backwards to enunciate the point.

Yamato clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, "You're so immature sometimes!"

"I know you are, but what am I." Taichi snickered as this statement enraged the blonde further.

"THAT'S IT!!" Yamato lunged towards him, but just missed grabbing his foot.

Taichi smirked, "Tsk, Tsk, Tsk, Yamato. If that's how you deal with taunts and insults from _friends_, then I honestly don't want to know what kind of stupid moves you'll pull when an _enemy_ tries the same trick." Without waiting for a reply he dashed further into the maze of alleys.

Yamato sighed as he realized what just happened, he played right into Taichi's hand by getting angry and upset, and therefore he knew he failed the first portion of the test. "Damn him." He jumped to his feet and began pursuing the brunette. He may have failed the first part, but he swore he wouldn't fail again; Taichi was going down.

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

"Sora!! Sora wait up!!"

Sora laughed and gently pulled on her honey colored mare's reins. "Mimi, I thought you said we were racing."

"Well...when I suggested we race I didn't think you'd get so far ahead." she admitted, pulling up beside Sora on her own chestnut mare.

Sora smiled as the duo slowed into a steady canter. The day was breathtaking and she didn't want to miss a minute of it. The sky was cloudless and the brightest blue she'd ever seen, gusts of wind would billow through her hair and make the emerald grass below bend like waves in an ocean. Trees were scarce in this vast ocean of green, but a blossoming flower would poke it's head above the grass every so often to give a splash of color to the tranquil landscape. Sunlight was pouring over the grounds like buckets of golden nectar. It was picture perfect, but it saddened Sora to know that so many people missed this beauty.

About seven years ago a bridge was built, cutting through the gorgeous landscape like scissors though a work of art, and causing many civilians to miss the picturesque scene.

She shook her head at the oblivious world, it was about ten minutes longer than using the bridge, but well worth the extra time in her opinion.

"So when we get into town I'll go deliver my letter and I'll meet you in "Blacksmith's Forge" in about ten minutes, alright?"

"Sure, Meems." Sora smiled.

They pulled up before a lone stable boy at the entrance to the eastern gate.

"Good day ladies."

"Good day," Sora greeted. She fished through her brown sack before coming across two gold coins. She tossed them to the young boy before swinging off her mare. "I expect them to be treated with the utter most care."

The stable boy was still gaping at the small fortune he held in his palm before nodding vigorously, "Yes of course Miss." He clenched the two coins in his hand and held them to his chest. "Thank you."

Mimi smiled as the duo strolled through the crowded streets filled with miscellaneous booths selling delicious smelling foods and eye-catching pieces of jewelry and pottery.

"Okay Sora, I'm going to deliver my letter before he leaves. I'll see you later! And don't spend all your savings in one place." Mimi winked before veering left and skipping between the humble houses of the Second District.

Sora watched her for a minute with a slight pang of jealousy. Mimi seemed so happy...so complete thanks to her boyfriend in Ichijouji. She talked about him so often that Sora would be able to spot him in a crowd without difficulty, even though she'd never laid eyes on him. It was obvious how much Mimi loved him, and by reading the simple text of one of his letters she could tell how much he loved Mimi in return. Wasn't Sora entitled to that same happiness? The bond between two people that was so strong they couldn't live without one another?

She sighed and hugged herself, pushing all those depressing thoughts out of her mind for the time being. She was here to get away from her troubles back at the castle, the last thing she needed to think about was her nonexistent love life.

"Fresh Fish! The cheapest price on the market! Only two silver pieces! Step right up ladies and gentlemen and feast your eyes on our delectable merchandise!"

"Jewelry! The finest pieces in Takenouchi! Gentlemen buy your lover something worthy of a queen! Ladies, with gems such as these you'll be the envy of every woman and the eyes of every man! Beautiful hand-crafted pieces! Sold for no more than a single gold piece!"

Sora snapped herself out of her thoughts and smiled _The merchants are calling._

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

"GET BACK HERE YOU THIEF!!"

"Not a chance buddy!"

"I SWEAR YOU LITTLE BRAT! WHEN I CATCH YOU I'LL HANG YOU FROM -- OOAF!!!"

Takuya smirked as he wheeled around to cast a triumphant smirk in the idiot's direction. "You were saying about catching me?" He walked toward the greedy man and slammed a foot into his face, taking advantage of the oaf's position. Takuya had easily spotted the bundles of hay being transported down one of the intersecting alleys, all he needed was expert timing to land the fat man face first through one of the tightly bound squares. He laughed at the enraged eyes of the captive before going behind him and loosened a heavy red pouch where the bastard kept the money he "earned". Truth be told this man was also a thief, he sold food in the market square and charged the poor citizens way more than they could afford. But he was far too clumsy and greedy to get away with it for long. Maybe being robbed by a kid is what he needs to be taught a lesson.

"YOU'LL PAY FOR THIS YOU STREET SCUM!" he seethed.

Apparently not.

Takuya tossed the bag up and down in his palm, the weight brought a large smile to his face. "You'll be feeding a lot of unfortunate people this evening, you should be feeling happy."

"To hell with these unfortunate beasts!"

Takuya narrowed his eyes. "I'm probably the _last_ person you should've said that to." He grabbed the man's collar and pulled him further through the hay, keeping his arms locked to his sides. Takuya was one of the youngest of his band of thieves, but he was also proving himself to be a powerful adversary and a talented leader. He raised his fist behind his head and smirked, "Trust me, this will hurt you more than it will hurt me." He smiled at the fear that had glazed the man's eyes and started to bring his fist down when he was shoved roughly from behind.

"Who the hell -- Taichi!"

" Good evening Takuya," he said cheerfully before noticing the man in the haystack. "...Hmm...Interesting choice of imprisonment. I myself probably would've chosen someplace far more humiliating."

Takuya rubbed the back of his neck and laughed nervously, "Well, he got himself stuck there actually. I just took advantage of it"

Taichi nodded slowly before walking over to the man and kneeling to look the man in the eyes. They say you can see a man's soul through his eyes, and Taichi and Hikari had a strange gift for being able to read people this way. He lowered his hood (a very risky move) and glared fiercely at the man that threatened his pupil. "Greedy isn't he?"

Takuya's mouth fell, "You can tell that just by looking at him!'

Taichi chuckled, "I'm not a magician Takuya, but I am observant." Takuya looked confused until he realized he was still clutching the man's money bag. "So what did the poor guy do?"

"I DIDN'T DO A DAMN THING!"

Taichi blinked a few times before running a hand over his face and shaking it dry, "Yes...of course you didn't." He look disgusted with the man and stood up to speak to Takuya directly. "So?"

"In the course of a few minutes, he overcharged a poorer citizen for a simple loaf of bread and insulted a family who refused to purchase his overpriced crap!"

"Well Takuya...people are jerks, but they shouldn't be pummeled to death because they sell overpriced food and insult passersby. I'm afraid that doesn't give you enough reason to beat this man senseless. You can't cure the human race, Takuya, no matter how big your heart is."

"Well...I know that, but he also stole several items from people when they weren't watching..."

This perked the Prince of Thieve's attention, "What kinds of items?"

"Jewelry, Money, a purse or two, the usual stuff." Takuya shrugged.

Taichi smirked, "Well since stealing is_ definitely_ against the law," he started to laugh at the irony of the situation; a _thief_ trying to teach another_ thief_ that stealing was wrong. "Well, teaching him what comes out of stealing from those that are too unfortunate to earn enough to support themselves, let alone his fat ass, is an excellent idea Takuya. You have my permission to continue, now I've got to run, Yamato's probably figured out where I am by now..."

"Yamato?" Takuya questioned. As if on cue, Taichi was suddenly seized from behind by his shoulders and slammed into a wall.

"I believe I just passed." Yamato smirked, "My letter?"

Taichi rolled his eyes, his face still pressed against the wall. For a few moments he tried to escape Yamato's grip but failed miserably. "Fine," he spat, accepting defeat. He carefully removed the letter from his cloak and handed it to Yamato's outstretched hand. "Happy?"

"Very."

"Then can you let me go!?"

"Hmmm..."

"Matt." Taichi warned.

"Oooh, look who's getting angry now."

Taichi's eyes narrowed. He slammed his heel into Yamato's shin, causing Yamato to loosen his grip on his shoulders and allowing Taichi to strike his elbow into his side, one of Yamato's hands shot to his side and Taichi grabbed his other arm and pinned it behind his back, leaving Yamato in the same position Taichi had been only seconds before. "Now you see, Takuya, this is what happens when you decide to gloat about your victory. The tables can turn on you so fast that you don't even realize what happened."

Takuya placed a hand in front of his mouth to hide his laughter at the death glare Yamato was giving the wall. "But wow Matt! I've never seen anyone sneak up on Tai before! That was awesome!"

Taichi smiled before releasing Yamato and stepping back a few steps. "It was impressive, as much as I _hate_ to admit it."

Yamato smiled in spite of what just occurred and turned to face his best friend and greatest rival. "I'll have my revenge, Taichi, just you wait."

Taichi rolled his eyes, "Just read your sappy love letter."

Yamato smirked as he carefully peeled the wax seal off the envelope, pulled out the letter, unfolded it, and began to read it. Taichi chuckled as he watched his friend become completely engrossed with the words written on the elegant piece of parchment. "Come on Takuya, we should let Matt and his letter have some _alone_ time." Yamato ignored the comment and his eyes grew impossibly large, "She's coming..." This stopped Taichi in his tracks, "What?"

Yamato seemed to snap out of a dream-like state and a huge smile formed on his lips. "Mimi's coming!!"

"What!! You're joking! What about -- This is -- WHEN!"

Yamato looked like he was about to start jumping up and down with joy. "She sent this three days ago, and she said they're be arriving in four!"

"This is great!! That means she's coming tomorrow! Wait until I tell Kari! She'll be screaming!"

"Who's Mimi?"

Yamato and Taichi turned to a bewildered Takuya and realized they had forgotten about the younger boy. "Mimi is Matt's girlfriend, and she's one of my closest friends. She was one of us original thieves, but she was offered a job in Takenouchi and moved away."

"Wow, she sounds cool."

"She is." Yamato said, hugging the letter close to his chest, as if he were afraid the news wouldn't come true if something happened to the easily damaged treasure. "I can't believe -- it's been so long...I wonder how much she's changed..."

Taichi shrugged, "We won't know until tomorrow. By the way, she said "we were coming" in her letter, who is she bringing with her?"

Yamato brought the letter back up to his eyes and scanned the lower half, "It doesn't say. But she does say she anxiously wants _you_ to meet her."

"Me?" He snatched the letter from his friend's grasp and looked for the line his blonde friend was referring to.

_"---- I can't wait to see you guys again! From your previous letters it doesn't sound like anyone's changed much (personality wise), although I'm sure most of you look different. Well, other than Tai whom I'm sure hasn't cut his hair or anything. Oh! Speaking of Taichi, you can go ahead and tell him that I'm bringing a friend of mine with me, a_ very pretty _friend who happens to be _single_. I think they'll make an excellent couple, and I'm saying all of this in my letter because I know how much it will annoy Taichi ----"_

That was all Taichi needed to read. "She's trying to play matchmaker again. Great."

"Again?" Takuya asked. He had the feeling he was going to like Mimi from the way she was making his role model flustered without even being there. He greatly admired Taichi, but it wasn't often the Prince of Thieves was in an awkward situation and he planned on taking enormous pleasure in seeing Taichi for the seventeen-year-old he wasn't often portrayed as.

"Mimi doesn't like the idea of her closest male friend walking around single." Taichi stated.

"Especially since he's got a fan-club." Matt murmured just loud enough for the two of them to hear.

"Shut it Matt." Taichi snapped. "Greeeeat. We might as well make some kind of play out of this, it'll be dramatic enough with Mimi running it. I can see the headline now "Romeo's undesired search for Juliet". Wonderful! Not only do I have to worry about Ken, but now Mimi's going to start a dating service with me as the unfortunate victim."

"Well...look on the bright side!"

Taichi looked at Yamato as if he were going crazy, "Bright side?"

"It'll be an interesting next couple of weeks and I won't have to cook."

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Mimi giggled as she peered through the window of "Blacksmith's Forge". Her friend was easy to find due to her vibrant auburn hair, and as she watched the young woman she felt another fit of giggles escape her mouth at the look on her face, it was priceless. She held a gleaming silver blade in her open palms, she looked like a child that was promised a lifetime supply of desserts and was permitted to eat them before dinner.

Mimi laughed again as she watched Sora's smile broaden and her eyes widen as the shop owner (as well as the maker of all the fine pieces of equipment) described all the wonderful things about the blade; balance, aero-dynamics, how it could slice someone's head completely off their shoulders. Ahhhh the life of a warrior was _grand_.

She smiled at her own joke before proceeding into the shop, a tiny bell ringing above her head to announce her appearance.

The Blacksmith looked up and gave her a small wave and a friendly smile. "Be with you in a moment Miss." The Blacksmith was a very large and muscular man with a head of light brown hair that was unevenly cut. His feet were clumsy, and his mouth was slightly crooked, but he had a bright smile and his eyes always had a gleam in them whenever he greeted his customers.

Mimi nodded patiently and walked over to a glass counter where all the daggers were on display. She loved the feeling of the hilt clutched in her hand, the swiftness as they flew from her grasp towards their master's target, and the critical wounds she could inflict at point-blank range. She glanced back at her friend before removing her own weapon from it's scabbard on her hip. Even though her life on the streets only lasted approximately four years it was enough to convince her that anyone could be a mercenary or rapist, so she never went anywhere unprepared. She smiled as images of her friends from the Ichijouji kingdom flashed through her mind, she did miss them terribly.

"Has something caught your eye Miss?"

Mimi was startled by the deep voice of the Blacksmith beside her. "Oh, umm...yes, as a matter of fact."

The Blacksmith chuckled, "Sorry to have startled you Milady, but I hadn't realized you were so deep in thought that you couldn't hear me approaching. Must be one hell of a blade you've been looking at."

Mimi smiled, "It is, I've been saving up for it and I've finally made enough. It's the one there, with the blue rose on the hilt."

"Aye, you have an eye for quality Milady. That one there has edges so sharp it could slice through the neck of a grown man."

_Again with the gruesome images_. Mimi thought, but she could tell that, although the man was exaggerating just a bit, the blades were definitely capable of doing plenty of damage if used correctly. "Could I hold it? To see if the hilt fits in my hand as perfectly as it looks through the glass."

The Blacksmith frowned, normally he didn't allow people to touch those daggers unless he had their money in hand, but he did note that she did have a valid point. Many professional swordsmen wanted to test out the blade before purchasing it to experiment if the sword could transform into an extension of their arm and stroke with every bit of grace and elegance as the owner was capable of. This young woman obviously had more experience with weaponry than it appeared and more than likely she wanted to test the same qualities with the dagger she was planning on buying. He pondered this for a moment before coming to a conclusion.

"I don't see why not, as long as you're not going to attempt to run off with it. That dagger is one of my best works."

Mimi shook her head, "Wouldn't think of it."

He nodded slowly and unlocked a latch on the other side of the counter with a key on his belt. He removed the weapon and gently laid it in the young woman's open hands. She was studying it with intense interest. The hilt was a glimmering silver with a small blue metallic rose melded into the center of it. The blade was indeed perfectly balanced and two entangled vines were stained onto the gleaming silver, snaking from the hilt to the tip. It had a dangerous elegance, kind of like her. Instantly falling in love with it, she reached for her purse. "I'll take it." With a broad smile she tossed the pouch to man "Every last cent is there. Thank you very much."

He smiled as he glimpsed into the bag to make sure there were gold coins within. "You're very welcome Milady."

"Excuse me, but I _would_ like to buy this."

Mimi quickly sheathed her new dagger and spun around to see Sora with the same sword she had been examining earlier. "Glad to hear it your Highness." the Blacksmith replied happily.

Mimi looked at the sword and smiled, "I think it's a perfect match for you Sor."

The Blacksmith smiled, "Listen to your friend Milady, she certainly has an eye for quality."

Sora placed the sword delicately on the counter and looked at her friend with a shocked expression, "_You_ Mimi? _You_ have an eye for quality?"

Mimi looked jokingly offended, "I can like dresses and learn a thing or two about swords, after all I live with you don't I."

Sora laughed and pulled out a pouch of her own that contained about 100 gold coins. "I'm sure this should cover it."

The blacksmith nodded with a large smile and turned the bag upside down into his palm. He quickly counted the number of gold coins to meet the price amount before giving the remaining sum back to Sora. "Thank you Ladies. Now don't go hacking people up with those beauties." He started chuckling at his own joke while the two young women forced a smile, said their goodbyes, and left the store.

"Honestly, what is it with men and their jokes about killing things!" Mimi yelled.

Sora laughed, "Your guess is as good as mine. Although I'm sure they just enjoy the thought of glory in battle, or some other form of nonsense."

Mimi nodded in complete agreement before changing the subject, "Sora, you're planning on meeting my friends when we go to Ichijouji, right?"

Sora stopped in her tracks, shocked. "Of course Meems! After everything you've told me about them!" Mimi smiled in reply, but anyone who knew her well enough could tell there was worry hidden behind those pearly whites. "Mimi?"

Mimi sighed, she knew her emotions could be read like an open book and she detested it. But Mimi had every right to feel nervous...she still hadn't found the right moment to tell Sora that she was a former member of the greatest and most notorious band of thieves in the world. Her shoulders were constantly hunched over due to the weight of this heavy secret, but it was imperative that she explain her..._interesting_ history to Sora before they journeyed to Ichijouji to meet them.

"Sor, before you meet them you need to know that they've all had extremely rough lives and every choice they've made was to insure that they survived."

Sora nodded slowly, "Alright."

Mimi inhaled sharply, still trying to steel her courage to reveal her friends' true identities. "Sora...do you remember me mentioning my friend Taichi?"

Sora's eyes lit up at the name, that was one of the names Mimi used frequently when she spoke of her old life in Ichijouji. "He was your best friend, right?"

Mimi nodded with a small smile, "Yes. But, you see Sora, he wasn't just my best friend...he has another name too...a name that I'm sure everyone has heard of at one point." Sora nodded encouragingly. "Sor...Taichi is the Prince of ---"

"SORA!!!"

TTTTTTTTTTTTTT

me: OOOOOOH!!! CLIFFY!!! Well, there's the first "official" chapt of my newest awesome story , and ya'll will be VERY happy to know that I'm getting a lot of absolutly brillant ideas for this fic and the next chapter will be written soon ...buuuuut...I'm having some family issues right now with my aunt in the hospital for severe liver failure, so it might be a while before I'm able to post the next chapter...BUT OH WELL!!! As long as it comes out good, that's all that matters!!!...right? RIGHT?!?! lol. REVIEW PLZ!!!! Reviews would make an awesome b-day present!! LUV YA'LL!!! LATERZ!!!!

OH!! I almost forgot!! Here's the info about the stories I mentioned in the library scene:

**My Father's Crown: by Caspian**: This is probably my favorite story EVER!! lol, just because it includes everything i luv in books; the time period (medieval), the action, the romance, the drama, the torture!! It's EXTREMELY well written too. lol, if you like Taiora and Takari you'll LUV this story too!!

**By the Power of the Stars: by sailormoonshadow: **Again, this is also fantasy in the time period with kings and queens, but it's mainly centered on magic. This story is mostly Takari, in my opinion, but the Taiora parts are SO CUTE! And the story is also Brillantly written. If the author published this story as a book, I think he/she would make millions, lol. Again, I think you guys will LUV it

**Sorry Doesn't Cut It: by lily-angel: **Completely Taiora with a bit of Mimato. (taps chin) I don't think this story was ever finished, and my stupid computer won't let me check! But the chapters that have been written are WONDERFUL!! Her writing style is amazing! And the idea of the story (once again, in medieval times, lol) is breathtaking! If you luv Taiora then you'd have to be crazy not to luv this one!...well...crazier than me, which is saying something!

**CS**

(oh guys!! I've decided that from now on, i'm just gonna reply to reviews after they're sent to me, it's SO much easier and I get ta thank you guys right away. So this is probably gonna be the last time i post review replies in the chapter itself, SO ARN'T YOU GUYS SPECIAL!! lol)

_**Crazy With Happiness: **YaY!!! I'm SO glad you luv the story!! I hope you luved the first chappie too hehe, and i hope I didn't take TOO long to update, and I'm gonna try to update as soon as i can as well. YOU ROCK!!! lol, LATERZ!!!_

_**JJ Chow: **Oh the wonder, oh the greatness of your reviews!! lol. Glad you luv my stories! (grins) Hope this first chapter was just as great!! YOU'RE AWESOME!!! lol, PEACE OUT!!_

_**Flarie Hanami: **Thank you! Thank you! (bows) HOPE YOU LUVED THE UPDATE!! lol YOU RAWK!!! LATERZ!!!_

**_Cursive Obsession_**: _Aww!! You're makin me blush, lol. Yep, the first chapter is Tai talking . (grins) Thanx SO much for the awesome compliments, I've gotta say I luv writing this story . YOU ROCK MY SOX!!! haha, THANX!!!_

_**Digimaniac: **HEY ANDJELA!! YaY!!! I'm so glad my T.T. Buddies luv this new story of mine!! lol, geez all these compliments on my writing style is gonna make my head inflate, lol. BUT I LLUV UR STORIES TOO!!! And doncha even THINK about erasing them , lol. YaY COOKIES!!! (hugs cookies) THANX BUDDY!!!! LUV YA!!! (eats a cookie) C-YA!!!_

_**iamkagomeiloveinuyasha**: (claps excitedly) YaY!!! I'M SO HAPPY U LUVED IT!!! And I hope you had an awesome b-day (damn it was almost a month ago wasn't it! lol)!! YaY!!! So you're 14 and I'm 15!! YaY!!! (starts dancing) Go Us! Go Us!! lol, but! (gasp) OH NO!! If you're getting old so am i!! NOOOOO!!! Hmmm...(gets into thinking pose) Then we'll just have to stay immature then won't we , lol. THANX BUDDY!!! HOPE YA LUVED THIS CHAPPIE!!! LUV YA!!! BYE!!!_

_**Taioraforeva11 (TerrorizingTaiora11)**: lol, I can't get over how much I luv ur new name! lol. YaY! I'm glad you like it!! THANX BUDDY o' MINE!!! HOPE THE NEW CHAPTER WAS AWESOME!! lol, LUV YA!!! LATERZ!!!_

_**AngelSachiya**: YaY!! Thank you! I'm glad you like it! I hope I can get the next update up as soon as I can!! YOU ROCK!! lol, C-YA!!!_

_**JyouraKoumi**: (rolls eyes) I don't understand why the hell you bother to write these ridiculious reviews. Firstly, they don't make sense, I mean COME ON, if you're going to insult me at least allow me to understand it so I can retaliate, and don't bother telling me that only Taiora supporters don't understand because I happen to know PLENTY of Koumi fans that can't understand a damn word you're saying. Secondly, you're wasting your time and mine, do you honestly believe I'm just gonna stop writing because some punk ass bitch like you doesn't like the couple I support? If so, then you're even dumber than I thought, and I happen to think you're REALLY dumb because of your grammer and addiction to flaming people. That shows that either you don't have a life, or your life revolves around making people feel bad which just sickens me. Go flame people that actually care dumbass_

_**YamiTai: **Yes, we're speaking about Taichi . lol, I would NEVER give up on Digitania, haha, i've just hit a wall of writer's block. BUT it will subside...eventually, lol. No he won't! MUWAHAHAHAHA, i just luv tormenting him...BUT IN A GOOD WAY! lol. Well I'm SO glad you luv the story (grins) And I'll update as soon as i can! I know I tell ya this all the time but, YOU ROCK!!! LATERZ!!!_

_**Vigatus**: Thank you! I hope you liked the first chapter too! You ROCK!!! lol, C-YA!_


	3. NeW aRrIvAlS, nEw PrObLeMs

me: (is dancing to a song on her brand new ipod)

Davis: CS??

me: (can't hear him)

Davis: CS??!!

me: (still can't hear him)

Davis:** CS!!!!!**

me: AHH!!! (falls) Geez Davis you don't have to yell!! I'm standing right here!!!

Davis: Yea but you --

me: Seriously!! You almost gave me a heart attack!!

Davis: But I --

me: Should be ashamed!

Davis: (rolls eyes) I give up

me: (nodds victoriously) ANYWAYZ!!! YAY!!! ANOTHER CHAPTER!!

Davis: Well it's about time! I bet all these wonderful readers couldn't wait to read more about me!

me:_ You_...HAHAHAHAHA!!! (wipes away tear) You're so funny Davis

Davis: (glares)

me: Hehe, okay well sry to say no Taiora in this chappie

reviewers: Awwww

me: But not to fear, the next chapter will have lots! YaY!! I've already gots loads of ideas for it!!

ANYWAYZ! Geez I'm such a baka! I forgot to put up the other **(::cough:: less important ::cough::**) pairings::

Taiora and Mimato are obvious

Hikari x Takeru

Miyako x Daisuke

Rika x Ryo

Takuya x Zoe x Koji love triangle

Takato x Jeri (no, she's not one of the thieves)

And I might add some innocent flirting among the others, like Catherine and Michael...that's a BIG maybe.

OKAY THAT'S ENOUGH OF ME TALKING!! ON WITH THE FIC!! Davis pass the popcorn and cookies!!

Davis: NO IT'S MINE!!

me: Grrr!! (tackles him)

TTTTTTTTTT

_**last time:**__ Hey guys Sora here! Well, Ken Ichijouji and his father arrived in the Takenouchi kingdom. I had just met the guy and already I loathed him! He wants to marry me! The PIG wants to marry ME!! Ugh! He doesn't even know me! But I suppose I'll have to try and be friendly since we're attending his ball in Ichijouji. The only bright side that comes out of this is that Mimi gets to see her old friends again, and just seeing that huge smile on her face tells me that me dealing with Ken is a small prcie to pay for my best friend's happiness. _

_But during our venture to the town to mail the letter that would warn her friends of her arrival we were caught, and I can tell my mother is NOT going to be happy._

TTTTTTTTTT

Ken glanced out the window of his beautifully decorated room with distaste. The carriages were being loaded for their departure this afternoon, and the slaves responsible for piling their luggage neatly within a single carriage were dropping trunks and cases with unreasonably loud crashes while onlookers gasped and raged about the fine quality of the beautiful things within.

Pathetic.

The servants here were treated far too softly. If that were one of _his_ slaves outside they would've been whipped or beaten until their broken spirits gave into screaming and begging for the pain to cease. This thought brought a smile to the Prince's face as he recalled the screaming that took place a few days ago...

_TTTT Flashback TTTTT _

_I promise that when the world is mine, all these people that have kept me from important matters will be the first to fall victim to my guillotine. _

"Ken, are you paying attention?"

Ken rolled his eyes_, What do you think you lumbering oaf_, "Of course I am, father."

King Ichijouji smiled fondly at his son, "Good to hear it lad. One day, as you know, you will have to host these accursed audiences with these petty people. It's my job as King to laugh at the fact that they think they'll be pitied on my someone as powerful as I am." He chuckled fondly before being interrupted by a horrible hacking cough.

Ken rolled his eyes again, this was another habit that annoyed him so much. His father's damn cough!! He couldn't say a single sentence without choking on his own air supply. He leaned his cheek against his palm as he impatiently waited for the King to cease that blasted cough.

About a year ago King Ichijouji had been diagnosed with Tuberculosis (TB) by the finest doctors money could buy. The stubborn King had demanded that the doctors redo the tests, unwilling to believe he caught such a dangerous disease. But as the weeks flew by his symptoms got worse and worse until he was condemned to his bed at least once a week. The palace staff was constantly fussing over him, desperately trying to keep their ruler alive, while Ken on the other hand was practically celebrating. He couldn't wait for his father to kick the bucket. He was looking forward to seeing the old man breathe his last breath.

_"-- can't believe you would be so reckless! And when we have an important guest! -- send you straight to your father if --" _

_" -- again! Mother, honestly you can't say I did anything wrong! -- wanted to buy something!" _

Ken lifted his head from his palm at the fierce shouts coming from behind a doorway. His attention was perked enormously and he was soon straining his ears to hear the rest of the argument.

_"You must've been out of your mind!! You knew we had an important dinner scheduled and you deliberately disobeyed me to go frolicking off with that maid of yours!" _

_"Mimi is not a maid mother!! She is my best friend and a valued member of this palace's staff and I refuse to listen to you blame her for my mistakes!" _

Ken smirked_ Well, well, well. So my bride-to-be finds it fitting to walk amongst the commoners, how interesting. I suppose I'll have to break her of that habit before we get to my kingdom, after all, the streets of Ichijouji are no place for a lovely young woman. _

_"This is precisely the reason why we are going to the Prince's ball! Honestly! Making friends with maids, mingling with commoners, the next thing you'll tell me is that you've fallen in love with a peasant boy!" _

_"And how will the ball change me mother?!?" _

_"You'll be able to walk amongst your own kind! Other wealthy nobles from across the land! All in all, I believe your isolation to the rest of the civilized world to be the cause of your inappropriate behavior." _

_"Oh spare me the drama! Mimi and the peasants are just as civilized as we are! In fact, I believe them to be far better than __**you**__!" _

Ken chuckled as the door slammed open with surprising force and the young princess stormed in. He immediately noticed how her eyes were narrowed in pure rage, the way her fists were clenched and shaking, how her jaw was set in a determined scowl, she looked absolutely ravishing.

Licking his lips he stood up from his temporary throne and walked briskly to intercept her, ignoring the angry outburst of his father that was soon interrupted by yet another cough. He smiled as he fell into step beside her, but she was so engrossed in her own fury that she didn't notice. "Good Evening."

Sora jumped several feet in the air and turned to meet the cold eyes of the one she had been fuming about only seconds ago. Her eyes darkened sufficiently and she continued forward, ignoring his polite request for conversation.

Ken's smile broadened in a sinister manner as he walked a bit faster to stand next to her again. "Hm, Hm, I suppose you Takenouchis' don't have a thing for manners do you? Because normally when greeted by someone who obviously has more wealth and power than you, you wouldn't hesitate to reply back."

"I thought we already came to terms with the fact that I don't like you and I don't plan on sparing any _real_ kindness towards you."

His eyebrows raised slightly in silent approval before that same twisted grin reformed on his mouth. In one quick motion he stepped in front of her and blocked her from proceeding any further.

"Stand aside." she ordered, her cheeks pink with suppressed rage.

Ken's lips twitched with the slightest hint of a smile, "Why don't you make me."

"Go to Hell." Sora spat.

Ken smirked with amusement and a clever comeback was already forming on his lips, but, to his disappointment, he never got the chance to say it.

"Forgive me _Your Highness_, but I need to borrow her Ladyship for a moment."

Ken scowled and spun around, now standing before him was the princess's lady in waiting. She was very attractive, Ken noted, other than the glare that was fixed dangerously upon him that creased her brows. He stared at her for a moment...there was something oddly familiar about her...

"Of course Mimi." Sora replied, giving the Prince a heated glare. She walked around the still figure of the Prince and stood beside her best friend. She gently tugged her arm, signaling that she wanted to get out of his sight as quickly as possible. Mimi nodded and the duo walked briskly out of the room.

_TTTTT End Flashback TTTTT_

Ken's eyes narrowed angrily, he still hadn't been able to place where he'd seen her before, there had only been a handful of people who dared to oppose him and they were all huddled together in a rat hole somewhere in Ichijouji. This thought made his eyes flicker with rage.

He had actually _seen_ only a few of them, the remaining ones were kept out of harms way by the more experienced members, but apart from those in the group themselves he knew more about them than any other man alive. And it would be this knowledge that would be their downfall.

Ken's rage intensified as he was reminded of his first encounter with the notorious Prince of Thieves. He was vexed by the memory of the villain's amused eyes and triumphant smirk. Although, his crimes didn't just revolve around thievery, he stole something from Ken that he was determined to redeem; his pride.

The Prince's perseverance to overthrow him has irked him for the last several years, but it was about to come to an end soon...very soon.

TTTTTTTTTT (_A/N: For this scene __**ONLY**__ the time changes from the last chapter are in effect_)

"Sooooo has she been like this for long?"

"Mm Hmm, approximately half an hour."

"Wow, and I thought _I_ was excited."

Taichi, Yamato, Takeru, and Jyou were all crowded in the doorway that led to Mimi's old bedroom that was currently being used for storage, watching Hikari with highly amused (and slightly fearful) expressions.

"Do you...uhh...think we should stop her?"

"Hell no! When's the last time this place got a decent cleaning!"

"Do you four plan on helping me or are you just going to stand there?!" Hikari asked, pausing for just a moment, duster in one hand and broom in the other.

Takeru and Jyou looked eager to help her if it meant she would stop glaring at them, but Taichi and Yamato answered first, "We're just going to stand here." they replied in unison.

Hikari glared at them then turned her pleading eyes to Takeru, "You'll help me, right Takeru?"

Takeru's face turned several dark shades of red as Yamato snickered behind him, but, as hard as he might try, he couldn't resist Hikari's beautiful light brown eyes. "Of course I'll help Kari."

Her face brightened and she handed him the broom. giving him a quick wink. "Thank you Tk."

Yamato let out a cough that sounded suspiciously like "kiss ass", which caused Takeru to whip his head around just in time to see the three of them vacate the area while they still could.

"She's got him completely wrapped around her finger." Jyou noted with a small smile. "You should be proud Tai, she actually has the ability to charm men into doing whatever she pleases, and we all know breaking Takeru is no small feat."

"Proud? _Scared_ is more like it!" Taichi replied, widening his eyes slightly. "Although I'm glad that she fancies Takeru and Daisuke out of everyone else. I trust them both and they have enough sense to know that if they hurt her they have to answer to me."

"Yea I'd like to see you try, I've taught Tk everything I know." Yamato smirked.

"Oh, then I _know_ he won't stand a chance."

Yamato rolled his eyes and punched his shoulder. By now the threesome had reached the dining hall and all the thieves were chatting idly as they awaited dinner. Upon the arrival of three of the original seven the hall hushed and everyone's eyes were trained on them.

Taichi looked at each of their faces with a puzzled expression before turning to Yamato, "You told them didn't you."

Koushiro politely excused himself from the conversation he and Miyako were currently having and approached their leader. "Yamato told us you overheard something interesting and were planning on telling us at dinner, now we're all curious."

The rest of the thieves nodded their heads in agreement, as though they rehearsed it before he entered.

Taichi smiled, "Yamato will you get Hikari and Takeru? I really don't want to repeat myself over and over again."

Yamato nodded curtly before retreating back from whence they came. Koushiro returned to his seat and Taichi and Jyou followed suit, Taichi at the head and Jyou taking his seat to the right of the empty seat on Taichi's left. Everyone left standing quickly hurried to their seats, eager for Taichi to explain what happened earlier that day.

"So Taichi, Yamato also told us he was able to catch you off-guard during a test today and Takuya confirmed it, is it true?"

Taichi rolled his eyes at the arrogant tone, "Yes Rika, believe it or not I _am_ human and can screw up once in a while. But believe me, it won't happen again. Isn't that right Daisuke?"

Davis's arms fell to his side and a disappointed pout appeared on his face, "Damn." he murmured from his position behind Taichi. Sulking, he plopped down in the empty seat two chairs to the right of Taichi. "Well, you can't blame a guy for trying. If Yamato can do it that means it's possible, right."

Taichi rolled his eyes, plucked a dinner roll from a basket in front of him and threw it at the younger boy, hitting him squarely in the center of the forehead.

The table erupted with laughter as Daisuke lost his balance --- which was already being tested on the back two legs of his chair --- and crashed to the ground. "Maybe when I'm fifty Daisuke." Taichi smirked.

"Wow, I'm gone five minutes and already Davis is making a fool of himself."

Daisuke immediately jumped to his feet, pulling the chair with him, at the sound of the voice. "Hi Hikari, I --" his eyes narrowed. "Takeru."

"Daisuke." Takeru replied with a triumphant smile.

"Takeru."

"Daisuke."

"Jyou." Koushiro said, his thumb pointing towards the young man across from him, his smile filled with mocking amusement.

"Catherine." Jyou said, joining in the joke.

"Michael." Catherine giggled.

"T --"

"Well I'm relieved we all know each others names." Yamato interrupted collapsing in his seat to Taichi's left, "but we have important things to discuss."

Protests erupted around the table.

"You know Matt, you should really have some fun every now and then." Taichi smirked, taking an exquisite looking wine-glass and taking a sip of the stolen contents.

"When I pinned you to the wall I had fun."

Taichi glared at him and set his glass on the table. "Touche'." Yamato smirked and opened his mouth to boast about his victory over the infamous Prince of Thieves, but Taichi intervened, "Bragging is an annoying habit Yamato, especially when you conveniently left out the part where your ego got the better of you and I was able to completely shift the tides in my favor."

"Tai, you have to teach me that move! It was awesome!" Takuya pleaded from the other side of the table.

Taichi shrugged and smiled at the enthusiastic boy, "Sure." He jumped up from his seat, but someones hand shot up and grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled him back into his seat.

"Not so fast Tai." Hikari smirked from her seat on his right, "You promised us all big news and we're all eager to hear it."

"Oh yea." Taichi said sheepishly, he had momentarily forgotten about what he overheard earlier today. Everyone was leaning towards the table now, the meaningless mini conversations that had filled the room were now halted and all thirty four multicolored eyes were watching him with intense curiosity. He smirked and took another sip of his drink, deciding to draw out the suspense even further.

Hikari rolled her eyes, knowing full well what her brother was doing. "Oh just get on with it!"

Taichi smirked before placing his glass on the table. "Well, I'm sure Yamato filled you in on the events leading up to my discovery. I was testing him, hid on a window ledge, and overheard the most promising source of information I've heard all week.

"While I was standing against the window I overheard two men talking. They were saying something about Ken's return, I wasn't able to catch all of it, but I did manage to hear that they were guards whose duties were to protect the Prince, so they were discussing some of the safety precautions being taken to keep Ken safe, as well as an interesting bit about Lord Takenouchi. Apparently Lord Takenouchi surrendered a vast quantity of their fortune to Ken for the wedding ceremony and it's all being stowed away within one of Ken's carriages...it's a shame it'll never reach Ichijouji's castle."

"Takenouchi? Wait a sec, the same Takenouchi Mimi works for?" Yamato asked.

Taichi shrugged, "I suppose. It's not exactly a common last name."

"So that's why Mimi's visiting." Koushiro mused. "I'm sure they're both invited to attend Ken's ball when they arrive."

"Wow, if we robbed an entire carriage I'm sure that most of the second district wouldn't have to worry about the tax collections for a very long time." Michael exclaimed.

"Exactly." Taichi said with a wide grin.

"...Taichi..."

Everyone at the table knew that tone, it was the tone Hikari had when she didn't particularly like one of her brother's schemes.

Taichi pretended not to hear the manner in which she spoke and innocently replied, "Yes Kari?"

"Tai...I feel guilty about this. Mimi's spoken so highly about Lord Takenouchi's daughter and stealing from her would just seem...wrong."

"Kari, are you forgetting that we're not stealing from Mimi's friend, but Ken. Like I said earlier, Lord Takenouchi _surrendered_ this money to _Ken_. Of course, by this I mean it no longer belongs to her."

Hikari still looked unconvinced, but didn't press the matter further. Her brother was stubborn and wouldn't give up an "ingenious" plan like this unless she came up with a very impressive argument, which, sadly, she hadn't had time to properly prepare.

"Alright zen, what iz our strategy for tomorrow?" Catherine asked, dabbing her napkin against her mouth.

"Easy." Taichi smirked. He stopped spinning the fork in his hand and stabbed it into his previously untouched dinner, "Divide and Conquer."

TTTTTTTTTTTT (_A/N: Okay, now the times have caught up with one another!!_)

Sora sighed, causing a cloud of silvery mist to form on her window. Out of boredom she lazily picked up her index finger and dragged it through the condensation, unconsciously drawing the image of a heart in the already rapidly disappearing cloud. Rain was slapping against the window and Sora felt sympathy towards the horses that had to trudge through the muddy landscape.

Takenouchi was far behind her and she was already feeling the symptoms of homesickness and anxiety. She had never left home before, never seen the dark city of Ichijouji, and, to make matters worse, she was not traveling there for a happy vacation...she was getting married.

She was so furious with her parents for deciding this without her consent. They had no idea what a horrible beast Ken was. In his short four days stay at their castle he caused more mischief than she and Mimi had during the last four _years_. During Mimi and Sora's younger days they were notorious troublemakers, but they always knew when to draw the line to keep someone from getting hurt or offended, but this guy didn't _care_! He raged at the chefs when a meal wasn't prepared _perfectly_, molested various maids and servants, insulted her mother and father (which in itself could be described as treason and punishable by death), and even tried to rape Sora _twice_!

Sora was a fair judge when it came to people and she didn't often blame someone for a mistake, but even _she_ was disturbed by his ruthless behavior.

"It's... nice seeing you too...Yama..."

Sora glanced over at her companion and had to suppress a fit of laughter. Mimi was laying curled up on the seat opposite her, a few tresses of her honey brown hair hanging in her face, and a small smile painted on her pink petal lips. It was no surprise her best friend was fast asleep, she spent a good portion of the evening trying to decide the perfect ensemble for her reunion with her friends and boyfriend, in fact she was still making last minute adjustments when Sora awoke this morning.

Shaking her head, she turned her attention from her best friend (otherwise she feared she would break into a fit of giggles and awake the exhausted young woman) back to the window to watch the looming shadowy mass that was approaching too fast for Sora's liking.

She was frightened, to say the least. The scenery before the actual town was enough to send anyone scurrying away as fast as they could; the grass (or what she thought was grass at one time) was nothing but a tangled mess of blackened earth and overgrown weeds, no other plant life existed in this vast vacant terrain.

But what worried her most of all was that there weren't any signs of animal life either; not the trails of horses that previously made the journey through this area, not the screeching of birds...nothing. Other than the soft clip-clop of their horses hooves it was eerily quiet, and Sora didn't like it one bit.

Animals were smarter than they were given credit for, in her opinion. They knew where to find food and how to capture it, they could sense when danger was approaching, and when a place was, for reasons unknown or completely unreal, unsafe.

She pressed her cheek against the window for a better look at the shadowed castle town and she felt a chill wash over her. Perhaps within the town it seemed normal, but from a distance a think smoggy cloud of evil was draped over the buildings and streets. It defiantly fit the description of an evil King's lair. She had heard so many horrible things about the dark kingdom; apparently the Prince was a big fan of public executions, so consequently there was one held once a week that the civilians were forced to attend, cival brawls were common, and thievery was so out of hand it's become a professional occupation.

_Who in their right mind would continue living in a place like that?? _Sora asked herself.

"AHHH!!! We're almost there!"

Sora jumped, hitting her head on the roof of the carriage. "Ow! Mimi!"

Mimi looked over her shoulder as though seeing Sora for the first time. "Oh, I'm sorry Sora." She giggled bashfully before sliding across the seat to sit directly across from her friend. "I guess I just got a little excited."

"That's your idea of a "little excited"?" Sora asked, her eyes wide in mock fear. "Then I _really_ don't want to see what happens when you actually see -- oh what was that cute nickname you called him in your sleep -- _Yama_."

Mimi blushed furiously, "Yama? That's a ridiculous nickname, why I would never call him such an undignified pet name."

Sora smirked, "Liar." Mimi glared at her friend. "You always start using profound words whenever you're embarrassed or angry."

Mimi crossed her arms over her chest a sulked, which simply proved to Sora that she was right. Mimi's eyes narrowed and she sat up and Sora was sure she was about to make another smart remark but instead she looked back out the window, "Why are we stopping?"

Sora looked at her with a puzzled expression before she too noticed the decreasing speed of the carriages and the absence of the rhythmic "clip clop" "clip clop".

Sora took the handle on the carriage in her hand and pushed the door open a crack to overhear what was happening outside. They were stopped in a public square a few miles into Ichijouji, not yet to the safety of the castle.

"MOVE!! You're blocking the path of royalty!!"

No reply. No hasting apologizes, no begging to be spared, no scurrying of hooves and creaking wheels as whomever it was raced to get out of the way. This fact bothered Sora tremendously, and by the stiff way her companion was sitting Sora guessed it bothered Mimi too.

"I'm giving you one final warning, MOVE, or BE MOVED!"

"Hm Hm, then by all means. _Move us_...if you can."

Sora looked at Mimi, "Is this guy for real? There's no way he can match the power of ten Ichijouji and Takenouchi men." But Mimi's eyes held fear and her face paled. Before Sora could blink Mimi was out of the carriage and crouched beneath the carriage between the two front wheels.

"Mimi? Mimi! Get back here! Those might be bandits!" Sora whispered furiously.

Mimi narrowed her eyes in the direction of the group of people standing a several yards away. There was no reason for the word "might" to be used in that sentence, these people _were_ bandits, and very _familiar_ ones at that.

"All right, you were warned. Take them down!"

Two of the guards charged towards them, swords drawn and mouths gaping while "fierce" battle cries flew from their mouths.

_Idiots. _Mimi thought as she noticed the hand signal displayed by the man who had spoken and the two standing on either side of him stepped forward. In one man's hand, an arrow was already nocked and the bowstring was pulled at the ready, while the other man had his sword drawn and was holding it in a fighting position. Mimi knew from the way they were positioned that the guards had no chance of winning this fight.

In the time it takes for an average human to blink the arrow had already lodged itself within the guard's breast plate, not a fatal wound, but the force was enough to knock him from his mount and crash unconscious to the ground. The other escort, startled by the sudden absence of his comrade, lost his focus which left an opening for the other man. Reacting quickly, he beat the face of his sword against the side of his head and rushed out of the way to avoid the horse's stampeding hooves.

Sora, who had watched the entire display from the carriage, was in shock. She had trained with these guards in what she believed to be the most advanced skill, but now...watching these commoners disarm them so effortlessly...

"What's the hold-up you swine!"

Sora looked over her shoulder to spy Ken stepping out of his own carriage, an enraged look in his cold eyes. Sora had nearly forgotten about him in all the excitement but reality crashed into her harshly and reminded her why she was there in the first place.

Ken jumped to the ground and marched over to the escorts up front; a Captain from the Takenouchi Kingdom and a so-called prodigy from the Ichijouji battle schools.

"I demand to know what's taking so --" His eyes landed on the human road block and his eyes widened slightly.

"Surprised to see me, _little king_?" the leader of the cloaked figures spoke. "I'm surprised you weren't expecting this."

Mimi could tell from her position on the ground that, for some bizarre reason, Ken wasn't nervous. Ken's sinister smile only increased her worries as he addressed the one who had spoken. "That's where you're _wrong_. The truth is, this is _exactly_ what I was expecting."

"What's Ken talking about?"

Mimi glanced to her right to see Sora kneeling next to her, obviously curiosity was too great for the fiery red-head. "I'm not sure...but it can't be anything good for whoever those guys are." Sora looked at Mimi closely, she had never seen such seriousness on her face before and Sora had the striking suspicion that she wasn't telling her something...and a BIG something from the way she was staring at the bandits.

Ken held an arm up to the sky and seemingly out of nowhere a dozen or more archers appeared on the rooftops surrounding the square, arrows nocked, they were prepared for even the slightest movement. Meanwhile on the ground it appeared that one of Ichijouhi's cavalries had split up into the surrounding alleys, now positioned for attack at the signal of their Prince.

This sudden ambush caused the thieves to stiffen and clench their weapons for comfort. The only one that seemed unperturbed by this announcement was the leader who neutralized Ken's cold gaze with his own fiery one beneath his hood.

The leader shook his head, "I'm disappointed Ken. Let's be serious, did you really believe I could be led into a trap of this magnitude so easily? Being overly confident in your own abilities can be costly, but underestimating your opponent can be a fatal mistake."

As if on cue simultaneous gasps filled the square as one by one the Prince's archers took their final breath before slumping over the edge and crashing in a heap of corpses.

Ken's brain hadn't fully accepted what had happened as he stared at the leader with absolute loathing. His archers were his trump card, and now with these valuable tools dispatched Ken was at a horrible disadvantage, but the worst bit of it all was now the enemy's archers were positioned perfectly to attack his cavalry with their arrows, and once his reinforcements were down it would be relatively simple to rob them.

Unless...

The only tactic he could think of that had any possible chance of working in his favor had only a slim percentage of success. He quickly ran the numbers in his head and came up with a 34 (percent) achievement rate...which left a shocking 63 (percent) failure rate. But 34 (percent) was better than 0 (percent)...

He battled internally with himself as he debated whether or not using this risky tactic was worth what he would receive at the end of it all. He would be sacrificing many of his men to the thieves, as well as his own safety, but if he succeeded the reward would be greater than anything his father could grant him; his honor restored and his most hated enemy at the mercy of his hands. This thought brought a small smile to his lips and allowed his two opposing sides to tip the scale and make a decision.

"I SURRENDER!"

This caused everyone to turn to the Ichijouji heir. A speechless silence encased the square as enemies and allies alike stared at him with stunned expressions.

"Sire, I assure you we can find another way to dispatch of these street rats --" Ken raised his hand to silence the guard. "Look around you captain. Do you not realize whose presence you stand in at this very moment?"

The Takenouchi escorts all stared at the cloaked figures for an eternity, but no recognition crossed any of their minds.

Ken chuckled at their ignorance. "The Prince of Thieves." Ken announced. The guards' eyes widened immensely and a few jumped in shock. Whispers began to ripple through the terrified soldiers as they recalled every rumor they'd ever heard about this monster.

"P-Prince of Thieves! You can't be serious Your Highness! Judging by the sound of his voice he's still a teenager!" The captain stuttered.

"Yes...a year younger than me in fact, and already a legendary hero...and villain."

Awed silence overtook the Takenouchi soldiers. On the rare occasions when the Prince of Thieves was mentioned his background story was that of an elderly man who escaped prison due to treason. He was rumored to have years of experience and gallons of blood stained on his hands...but a _boy!_ It was too much for these men to swallow and they refused to believe that a boy was able to rob nearly every existing monarch in all of Ichijouji (Ichijouji and Takenouchi being the only two that haven't been tainted by these unworthy hands).

"Bragging about me again, Ken? I didn't know you thought so highly of me or my men."

"Don't flatter yourself. I merely don't want these Takenouchi imbeciles charging after you again without realizing who they're dealing with." Ken snapped. "Especially after a formal surrender."

"Surrender...hmm...now why don't I believe you?" Taichi unsheathed his sword in preparation for what he was sure to be an anything _but _peaceful surrender.

Ken smirked, "Perhaps it's because you know me too well. You think I have some plan up my sleeve, but I don't. I know when I'm beaten. So accept my surrender and listen to my terms."

Taichi's eyes narrowed beneath his hood, he wasn't buying a word he said but decided to play along to see where this was going. He casually lowered his sword and dug the tip into the ground and leaned against it, "Alright, let's hear your terms."

Ken smirked inwardly, "I will leave the carriage with all the treasures here for you to pillage, but you have to allow my guests and I to leave peacefully."

"Guests? Ahhh, your wife-to-be. I hear she's quite the jewel."

"You heard right. Now allow us passage and I'll leave the spoils of this scrimmage behind."

Taichi's lips tightened, he would never admit it aloud but he was nervous about this situation.

Ken was a cruel bastard that would willingly sacrifice all his men in order to save his own neck, and there were so many principles that were uncertain...if he made any sort of decision without proper thought it could well lead into disaster.

He quickly surveyed the area and weighed his options.

On one hand, If he agreed to these terms Ken was likely to pull something. He knew damn well Ken wouldn't give up a fight no matter how helpless it seemed, he'd witnessed it first-hand on numerous occasions. The fact that he even considered using the word spelled trouble for all present.

Then on the other hand, if he didn't agree to a "peaceful" surrender the cavalry stationed behind them would only be a hand signal away from causing monuments damage to his comrades, and it wasn't a risk he was willing to take without warning them first.

He cursed at his stupidity for not disposing of the cavalry sooner!

Before Ken's arrival, the first thing he noticed were the archers. He knew without a doubt that they were going to be ambushed if he didn't take care of them immediately. He divided the lower half of his team to take out these complications, but if he divided his team any further Ken would suspect they were wise to his plan, so he couldn't do anything about the small armies that were to assist the archers if necessary, and now he was beginning to regret his decision to grant them life.

He narrowed his eyes and slowly raised himself out of his slouching position, still clutching his sword. He signaled for his thieves to stay where they were and he began walking towards their enemy. His only conclusion was that Ken was

Ken noticed his confident stride and smirked, he knew quite well the Prince of Thieves didn't believe his proclamation and had his own plan ready to be set into action. He, too, began to cross the square.

The leaders of the adversaries stopped midway and the two sides barely dared to breath in the air that was heavy with blood lust.

"You surrender, do you?" Taichi asked.

Ken noticed his hand tighten on the hilt he firmly clutched. "As untrustworthy as ever, ay _Taichi_?"

"I grew more cautious is all." Taichi replied, forcing his focus away from the way he winced at the sound of his name of the tongue of the cold-hearted prince.

Ken smirked tauntingly, "Oh did you? Then explain to me why you abandoned your party to come speak with me, when you knew about the ambush I had waiting."

The clashing of metal caused Taichi to spin around partially, just in time to see the Calvary come stampeding towards his friends

_Damnit! _he was hoping Ken wouldn't attack now that his archers were in position to take out his cavalry, but Ken was a ruthless tyrant who would feel no remorse for losing a small number of lives for the sake of winning. _Yamato will have to take control of the situation, it's out of my hands._

Taichi was brought out of his thoughts when Ken gave a quick cry of attack and brought his sword down towards his head, but during the last possible moment Taichi raised his blade and blocked the overhand attack with a simple parry. Prepared for a counter attack, Taichi quickly changed his footing and tried to slice his opponent with a middle cut across the stomach, but Ken jumped backwards and missed the edge by mere centimeters. Ken recovered quickly and aimed a low cut towards his enemy's legs, but Taichi quickly countered by plunging the tip of his sword into the pavement at an angle and allowing the edge of Ken's sword to clash against it.

Keeping their swords locked in place Ken smirked, "I see your reputation continues to precede you."

"And I see the rumors of your skills continue to be a major overstatement."

Ken's eyes flashed with fury as he retracted his sword from their crossing position and made a quick jab towards Taichi's shoulder. Taichi, seeing the movement beforehand, sidestepped and easily counterattacked, slicing through the skin of Ken's unprotected side and drawing first blood.

Ken cursed as he jumped back, clutching his side with his free hand and scowling that his new wardrobe had already been tarnished.

This was suicide and he knew it.

As much as Ken _**loathed**_ to admit it, his sword skills were no match for the notorious Prince of Thieves. The boy's skills were legendary and he was still a teenager! Ken, being of royalty, was trained in the art of swordsmanship by the finest teachers his father could find, but even with hours of training and sweat he wasn't even close to being in the same league as Taichi.

Ken was proud, but not dumb.

If this continued the way it was going Ken would surely lose. He needed to find another way...a distraction of some sort to take the boy's mind off the battle...

Ken's brain suddenly flashed to the beginning of their battle when he ordered his cavalry to attack, his focus was completely on his friends...and his sister.

He smirked at his own brilliance and signaled to his front Ichijouji soldier; the prodigy from the Ichijouji battle school. Understanding instantly, the young man raced away from the carriages and toward the battle raging between the cavalry and the Thieves.

Taichi didn't notice the man, but Mimi did.

She knew this spelled trouble for her friends and she was about to rise to her feet and stand beside her friends and help them fend off the plague of Ichijouji men, but a firm hand on her shoulder prevented her from doing so.

"Sora, Mimi, get back in your carriages this instant! Can't you see what's happening!"

"But mother! Wouldn't it be wiser to stay here, what if they decide to take the carriages if they win!" Sora shot back.

"That's ridiculous Sora. Ichijouji has never lost a battle and I doubt they'll start now, especially since they have guests with them." Lady Takenouchi rolled her eyes.

"Milady, pardon my intrusion, but do you realize _who_ they're fighting?" Mimi asked.

"What does it matter. We'll be out of here in mere minutes. King Ichijouji agrees that this type of thing happens quite frequently and are no reason to be alarmed."

"Mother, this is the Prince of Thieves and his men! The bloodthirsty killer!" Sora failed to notice Mimi wince at her words. "You know the stories as well as I do, and can you honestly say we'll get out of here without a scratch?!?"

"Enough of this meaningless argument, I want the two of you in this carriage now, or I'll ask one of these soldiers to put you there and make sure you don't leave!"

This shut Sora up. She growled inwardly and gently tugged on Mimi's arm, but surprisingly Mimi wouldn't budge. Sora knew Mimi despised violence; she would only inflict pain on someone if it were absolutely necessary, so Sora was puzzled by the way Mimi appeared to be so entranced in the battle taking place only a few yards from where they knelt.

"Meems?"

Mimi didn't reply. Realization finally sunk in. She knew what Ken was planning to do and she wouldn't allow him to hurt her friends again. Mimi dashed out of her crouching position beneath the carriage and raced toward the front line of soldiers.

"Tai he's going after Kari!"

The soldiers turned to her and were instantly under the impression that this young woman was some crazy commoner; her dress was covered in dirt and ripped in several places in her haste to get to the front line, her eyes were wide with fear and her tears caused the mascara she wore so stain her fair cheeks with black lines.

"Miss you can't be here."

Mimi glared at him, "I don't care! Taichi!! He's going after Hikari!"

"Miss, you need to leave, this is a dangerous area." The Takenouchi soldier took her arm to lead her away, but Mimi jerked it out of his grasp. "Don't touch me! I can't leave, my friend's in trouble, can't you see that!" Mimi tried to run towards the battle, her common sense lost in her desperate attempt to save her best friend, but two Ichijouji men grabbed her forearms. "Release me this instant you damned bastards! Taichi!!"

"Quiet wench!"

The Takenouchi soldiers were in shock as they watched the Ichijouji man raised his hand and slap the defenseless young woman across the face. "Whoa, take it easy! She's just a girl!"

"A girl who needs to learn her place! She's stepped out of line and needs to be pushed back." the man that slapped her replied.

Mimi's tears had ceased and her face was turned away from her audience, her cheek already turning red with hints of black and blue. Everyone was silent as they awaited the girl's reply, and it came...but it wasn't what any of them expected.

Slowly her shoulders began to shake and they all believed she was crying, as any normal young woman would be, but Mimi (as we all know) isn't exactly _normal_. She lifted her head to reveal that she was laughing?!?

"You idiots." She chuckled, "Do you honestly think you'll win. Sure, you may win this battle, but in the long run you'll crumble alongside your beloved rulers, Ichijouji is undergoing a revolution, and anyone foolish enough to remain standing with the Ichijoujis have promised themselves a life filled with hell!"

"She's mad!"

"Is what she says true?"  
"Of course not! She's crazy!"

"Shut her up! I can't listen to her talk of nonsense a moment longer!"

With the extra power boost of fear, the same Ichijouji soldier slapped her again, this time, though, it was strong enough to knock her unconscious.

"Mimi!"

By now Sora had reached the scene and was unfortunate enough to wittiness her best friend getting slapped into an unconscious state with (in her eyes) no reason at all! "How dare you!" she raged at the soldiers. "You have the gall to lay a hand on a woman, and none other than your future queen's most trusted companion!" The soldiers all exchanged looks, realizing they were in deep trouble. "Every Ichijouji law states that I have the right to execute the lot of you here on the spot!" She glared at them each in turn and watched as their fearful expressions turned to one of absolute horror. She took a deep breath and unclenched her fists before continuing, "But I won't, because then I'll be just as bad as the Prince. I'll grant you mercy, but you in turn must apologize to my dear companion when she awakens."

The soldiers nodded and bowed their heads to the future queen. "We thank you Milady. You will not regret your decision."

"You best hope I don't." she replied with a small smile. "Now take her back to the carriage."

The soldiers nodded and a Takenouchi man gently lifted her bridal style and carried her to the carriage with Sora in tow.

She hesitated before climbing into the carriage, resting her hand on the door. She turned her attention back to the battle and watched the raging war between Ken and the Prince of Thieves, her eyes fixated upon the hidden face of the Prince of Thieves. She still couldn't believe Ken's announcement, if what he said was true then he was her age. She wished she could see his face, just to convince herself what she was led to believe beforehand was true.

Throwing aside these thoughts, she climbed into her carriage and closed the door, no longer wishing the know the outcome of this battle. It didn't matter who won, she would lose either way.

Ken, on the other hand, _undoubtedly_ cared about the aftermath.

Cursing, he jumped backwards as Taichi's sword almost sliced through him again_. He's not even out of breath! Is it possible that he's toying with me?!?! _

"Had enough?"

Ken's eyes narrowed as his hand instinctively clutched the hilt of his blade. The scoff was evident in his voice, and he didn't need to see his face to know there was a smirk on his mouth and glimmers of mockery in his eyes. "You jest at my abilities _sire_?"

"I'm just voicing what you're capable of doing to yourself every time you pick up a blade." Taichi smirked. (a/n: I hope you all got that, lol)

Ken's rage was rekindled, but he repressed his desire to lash out and hack him into a million pieces. His plan was still in motion and he needed to keep Taichi's focus completely occupied until the right moment.

But Taichi was beginning to suspect this possibility.

He jumped backwards and had to resist the urge to roll his eyes as, once again, Ken left his already injured side unprotected. He was making more mistakes than Jeri did during one of her frequent visits to see Takato, and she had only touched a sword that one time

Ken was a formidable opponent, no doubt, but his anger and pride continuously gave Taichi an upper hand. Ken was making elementary level mistakes that Taichi found to be quite unnerving, he was either totally off his game, or...he had something else planned that was taking his focus away from the present situation.

Raising his arm, he prepared to strike the wounded flesh, but a horrible, blood curdling sound froze his muscles and chilled his blood.

"TAICHI!!"

Taichi, disregarding the fight between himself and the Ichijouji Prince, lowered his weapon and whipped his head over his shoulder, but the sight he was looking at almost made him drop his sword.

"Hikari."

"Hm Hm. Now our fight gets interesting with the stakes so high."

Taichi spun around to face his opponent with absolute loathing. "Let her go you bastard!"

"Task, Tsk, Taichi. You should know by now that insults and threats are futile methods of persuasion. In fact they're so insignificant they rival that of your social standing."

Taichi's temper flared, but now he was worried. How was Hikari captured if Takeru and Daisuke were there protecting her...unless they _weren't_ _able_ to protect her! Fear welled within his chest as his mind played out thousands of possibilities that all led up to the death of his closest friends. He was suddenly experiencing a horrible case of deja vu and couldn't stop the vivid images from crossing his eyes; Yamato's face covered in blood, Mimi screaming and struggling as she was being separated from them, Hikari's screams of fear and rage echoing in his skull.

"Brings back fond memories doesn't it?" Taichi raised his head from his hands and looked at the owner of the voice. "I have to say I've tortured thousands of victims, and not one of them screams as wonderfully as your sister; such passion in those lungs of her's."

"Shut up." Taichi seethed.

"You know, after I win this "battle" I might just keep her alive so you'll be reminded of your failure to protect her with every scream."

"Shut up!"

"Oh and some of those other friends you've made look like they'll break easily. Yes I can tell I'll have fun with this group, tell me, is that whore you used to hang out with still in your little gang? I believe her name was Tachikawa, now she was _fun_."

"**SHUT THE HELL UP!!**"

Ken stopped, a cruel smile lifted the corners of his mouth_. Perfect._

The square was silent as they watched the rivaling princes. Whatever Prince Ichijouji had said, it obviously struck a cord within the Prince of Thieves; he was shaking with rage and he was clutching his sword so firmly his knuckles were turning white. "You loathsome, spineless, vile, arrogant, hell damned son of a bitch. You'll regret murmuring the _slightest_ indecency about my comrades. I'll make sure of it." He raised his sword and prepared for Ken's first move. Ken smirked as he raised his own sword.

For several agonizing moments they stood in silence, each calibrating their own strategy to take down their rival. Although Taichi's was far more honorable than Ken's.

Finally the silence was broken.

Ken raised his weapon and charged at Taichi. Taichi raised his blade in anticipation to block the swipe with a parry, but just as Ken's blade was about to make contact with his own Taichi cringed and almost dropped his sword, giving Ken the opportune moment to slice through Taichi's sword-wielding arm.

Taichi hissed and jumped back, clutching his arm as blood gushed between his fingers.

Ken smirked as he glanced over at the Ichijouji man he sent off earlier to apprehend the younger Kamiya brat. She was proving to be more valuable than he thought. Her screams were the prefect distraction against the Prince of Thieves. All he needed to do to achieve success was make her scream every time he attacked and he would claim victory hands-down, and with his faithful servant holding the girl hostage there was no way he could lose.

Taichi narrowed his eyes and took a fleeting glance over his shoulder. Why was no one helping Hikari??!! When he caught sight of what took place while his back was turned, though, everything fell into place.

Both upward and downward there were signs of catastrophe; his archers (the younger and more inexperienced members) had been caught off guard when Ken's men crept upon them with the skill of ninjas. They were easily disarmed, and the ground was littered with broken arrows and pieces of shattered bows, although a few that must've given the guards a hard time and were now being choked by their own bowstrings.

The ground was in no better condition; Yamato and his more elite members had been pressed back to back with one another as the Cavalry closed in around them, trapping them in a circle of experienced swordsmen and horsemen. But Taichi wasn't _too_ worried about them, some of them had gotten themselves into tougher situations before and came out unscathed.

He turned his attention to the soldiers now. He could tell from their focused expressions that they were battle trained...they acted upon instinct and orders, barely having enough brain capacity to breathe without being told to. The wheels in his head began spinning as another idea came to mind. It would more than likely lead to _his_ downfall, but it would give his friends the perfect opportunity to escape and regroup...if they would follow this direct order was another matter entirely. He sighed, his trust would have to rely on Daisuke.

"I'll give you one chance Taichi. Surrender now, or your friends will suffer the consequences of your choice."

"Is there a third option?"

"You are in no position to be bargaining!"

"Says _you_."

Ken's cheeks flushed with suppressed rage. "You dare mock me!! And while your friends are in danger no less!!"

"Uh...yea I think that's what I just did, or are you too stupid to realize sarcasm when you hear it?"

Ken felt his block boil. "You're stalling Taichi. Admit it! Even the almighty Prince of Thieves can't discover a way out of a trap like this!"

Taichi smirked, "Oh?"

"Yes."

"Really?"

"_Yes_."

"Do you _really_ think so?"

"_**YES**_!"

Taichi chuckled, "I'll admit your trap is good Ken. Every detail has been looked over carefully and every scenario has been considered and prepared against with the up most precision. But you've got one major flaw in this perfect plan of yours."

"Oh?" Ken asked, laughing a bit himself, "And what might that be?"

"Easy." he calmly placed his sword in the ground again and leaned against it before proclaiming, "I'm the Prince of Thieves Ken! A demon! A monster! A killer! The living embodiment of evil! Hm, I'll have to commend whoever came up with that last one, sounds very intimidating...Almost as bad as the Prince of Blood, ay Ken?"

Ken smirked at him, amusement lingering on every word as he spoke, "As much as I enjoy hearing about all you titles (note the sarcasm), what is this "major flaw" my plan has?"

Taichi rolled his eyes, "I guess I'll have to spell it out won't I." He sighed, "The fault line in your plan does not lie across your battle strategies or the positions of any of your men...it lies within the ignorance you have of your opponents. You still underestimate my team, and I can promise they'll prove to be far more powerful than any force you can throw at us. You also underestimate me, which you'll find to be the gravest mistake of your life." Taichi straighted and pointed the tip of his sword at Ken, then he did something _no one_ saw coming; he took the fabric of his hood in his hand and tossed it back.

Gasps echoed around the square as the soldiers got their first real look at the infamous Prince of Thieves, and every single one of them was astonished. He was still a youth around the age of sixteen! But what caught them off guard was his appearance; no one, Takenouchi or Ichijouji, imagined the Prince of Thieves to be young, but they certainly weren't expecting him to look relatively normal (other than his hair), or in fact quite handsome. What on earth could've possessed this boy, who apparently had looks _and_ smarts, to turn into one of the most devious of criminals??!!

The Thieves were confused about his actions; Taichi rarely showed his face in public due to...past difficulties, but to an entire crowd of imperial soldiers?! What was going on in his head?!!? Now the risk of exposure was even greater than it had been earlier!!

A scream from above alerted everyone and all heads whipped upward to watch as another guard fell to the ground with a loud "thunk".

The Thieves were struck with the realization when they noted that when Taichi revealed his face the entire square had been stunned into forgetting about everything, including their hostages!!

Koushiro was the first to recover and he jumped onto the closest horse in his reach, and plunged one of his daggers into his chest. The soldier gave a cough as blood trickled down his chin before he slumped over. Koushiro shoved him off his saddle and carefully mounted the beautiful beast. The horse whinnied with fear as the stranger straddled his back and was about to try and buck him off, but the stranger placed a palm on his elegant neck and stroked it lovingly.

"Relax, I promise we won't hurt you, we just need your help."

The intelligent animal seemed to understand every word the red-head said and nodded as they rode off to assist their leader. Koushiro glanced back and nodded as he watched the others follow his lead and chase after him on white stallions.

Daisuke, meanwhile, had been the one to knock off the guard on the roof. Taichi had assigned him to supervise the younger thieves during this particular adventure, something he wasn't thrilled about, but Taichi wanted to test his leadership skills so he might be able to lead his own squadron one day. He had reluctantly agreed and had been perched on one of the rooftops during everything that happened on the ground. From his perch, though, he also had a bird's-eye view of their position and the mini situations that would break out during various times; he watched the Takenouchi guards argue with some crazy girl before she was hauled away, but not before another girl screamed at them and stormed off. He also noticed the man abduct Hikari and at that moment he was so tempted to jump off the building and rescue her, and by the time he realized he had to stay at his post his feet were already half-way off the edge of the roof. He couldn't help but brood over the fact that if she were with _him_ and not _Takeru_ she wouldn't have been taken!! It was shortly after this that Taichi revealed his face and he noticed the man who had been strangling him with his own bow had sufficiently loosened his grip. Daisuke found this as a window of opportunity and he took it without question. He slammed his elbow into the guards abdomen and threw the bow off his head, taking out his sword as he did so. In one swift motion the guard was thrown off the roof and because of that one simple action the fates were back on their side!!

Or so they thought...

Ken scowled with the freedom of his leverages_. I suppose I'll just have to finish the job myself. After all, I still have a huge advantage..._

Wanting to prove he was still in control of the situation he charged towards Taichi again, preparing to hack another gash into his arm.

Taichi, his senses heightened with the removal of his hood, could see Ken was still desperately clinging to the tattered remains of his plan. His sharp eyes glanced over his shoulder where Hikari was still being held captive, Takeru and Micheal were trying to rescue her but they were trapped in one of those "move and I'll kill her" circumstances that only led to a draw. Taichi sighed, this battle was just filled with unnecessary obstacles.

He readied his sword, knowing full well what was about to happen but not seeing any other option, and prepared it to block Ken's attack, but at that moment Hikari was forced to wail again and Taichi didn't notice Ken change tactics at the last minute. With Taichi's attention temporarily focused on his sister Ken was able to get a clean swipe at his abdomen, he then raised his sword for an overhanded attack but Taichi ignored the searing pain of this new wound and parried.

Ken smirked at Taichi's decreased speed and planted a kick in his injured stomach. Taichi jumped back and missed his foot, bringing his sword up to block his face as Ken spun around and clashed his sword against Taichi's. For a moment neither adversaries moved, both trying to knock one sword out of the others hand by sheer force.

"You're weakening Taichi." Ken smirked from his side of their crossed swords. "It appears that in my absence you've grown soft." Taichi's eyes darkened. "You couldn't kill me then, and you can't kill me now." Ken chuckled as he kneed him roughly in the abdomen.

The whole square was silent as a sword clattered to the pavement.

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

me: OOOH CLIFFY!! YaY!! It's done!!!

Davis: What, the chapter?

me: (rolls eyes) No, my cupcakes.

Davis: You have cupcakes??!!

me: (hits head on desk) Ever heard of sarcasm? lol, ANwayz!! Thanx ya'll for all your reviews!!!

Now about the next update (laughs nervously) Today was my last day of school!! YaY!! And since I'm exempt from all my finals I'll have all this week to work on it, buuuut next week I'm gonna be in San Fransisco for an orchestra trip and right after that (like, the day after I come back) I'mm off to Denver to visit my best friend. So it might be a while till the next update! SRY!!! BUT I'll try to get as much done this week as possible, AND i'm gonna bring lots of notebooks and stuff so I can write down all my ideas .

SO REVIEW PLZ!!! And Ya'll get cookies!!! (claps) LATERZ!!!!

**CS**


	4. Preparations for Disaster

me: HIYA EVERYBODY!!!!

Davis: OMG! CS! YOU'RE BACK!!! (runs over and gives me a hug)

me: (blinks) Hey Davis

Davis: It was SO boring without you!!

me: Well I _am_ the life of the party (grins)

Davis: Yea, don't leave EVER again, I had to resort to hanging out with Yolie, and I was going out of my mind!!!!

me: You didn't hang out with Kari?

Davis: Nope (pouts) She filed a restraining order while you were gone

me: ... (bursts out laughing)

Davis: It's not funny!!

me: (stops) Of course it isn't (tries to hold back laughter)

Davis: (glares)

me: I'm sorry Davis! hehe, I'll make it up to you in this story, deal?

Davis: (looks hopeful) How?

me: I don't know yet (thinks) But I'll give you a good role!! How bout it!

Davis: Okay (grins)

me: ANYWAYZ!!!! SO, YaY!!! I'M BACK!!!! And A NEW CHAPTER IS UP!!! YAY!!! WOOOOOHOOO!!!!!!

Davis: Wow, you sure are hyper today

me: What can I say, it's great to be back writing fanfics! I MISSED YOU COMPUTER!!!! (hugs moniter)

Davis: Riiiiiiight

me: THANKS TO ALL THOSE THAT REVIEWD MY LAST CHAPTER!!! I LUV YOU GUYS!!!!

**AngelSachiya **

**Bookworm1080 **

**Crazy With Happiness **

**Rayu **

**JJ Chow **

**Flarie Hanami **

**M M Forever **

**l'ange-de-feu **

**TerrorizingTaiora11 (SYD!!) **

**Lady Something **

**GogetaKame **

**w nymph **

**BandGeek95 **

I know I told some of you guys that there would be Taiora and Mimato in this chapter, and weeeeeell, it got kinda long and I figured there would be LOTS in the next chapter!! **I PROMISE!!!!!! **

me: Well, that's enough of me blabbing, READ AND REVIEW!!!!!

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

_**last time: **__Hey guys it's Koushiro. Well, I guess you could say we're kind of screwed. At dinner several nights ago Taichi revealed to us some information he overheard while testing Yamato. This information was top secret, and it had to do with the safety precautions going to be used for Ken's return to Ichijouji. Yamato, Taichi, and myself staged, what we believed, to be a nearly flawless raid by disposing of Ken's archers and calvary...but things went horribly wrong. While myself and Yamato were with the cavalry Hikari was taken captive by an Ichijouji soldier, and there was nothing any of us could do to help her without endangering everybody else. So they used her as a distraction for Taichi, who was busy fighting Ken, and it was working. So Taichi, seeing how disasterous everything had become, used Ken's technique against him and revealed his face to the entire square. The tables were turned once again, only this time in our favor, but that's when the worst possible thing happened and none of us could stop it..._

TTTTTTTTTTTT

Daisuke hadn't moved in three hours.

His legs were cramping from the odd angle they had been in since their confrontation with the Prince, but he refused to move.His stomach started growling what felt like days ago, and yet even starvation wasn't enough to move him from his perch overlooking the square.

Miyako had been checking on him regularly (much to everyone's surprise) trying to convince him to return to the hideout, but he couldn't.

He couldn't return to the place he came to call home now that --

". . . . . ."

He shook his head, he couldn't even bring himself to say it.  
No. He preferred to remain in his cocoon of illusions, ignoring the harsh reality that had been so cruel to him. This was his way of dealing with things, it had been since...as far back as he could remember. His life had been spiraling out of control for years before he met Taichi and Hikari, and, as if through some supernatural force, they pulled him out of the black void he was slowly sinking into. But fate, it seems, was not done screwing his life up yet.

"Davis?" Daisuke smiled slightly when he felt the comforting hand of his current love interest placed delicately on his shoulder. "Hey Hikari."

Hikari's eyes widened in shock; no springing to attention, no string of compliments that barely made sense, no unwanted physical contact?!? Oh man, Daisuke wasn't taking this well at all. Of course she should've guessed this by now after Miyako's numerous failed attempts to cheer him up. _Although Miyako probably wasn't the best person for the job..._ Hikari mused as she watched the boy's impassive face with interest.

She had never seen him so...so..._depressed_. Hell, the only similarity between _Daisuke_ and _Depressed_ was that they both started with the letter "D". She knew he was blaming himself for not being able to help Taichi when he was in perfect position to do so, although Hikari felt that if the blame should fall on anyone it should rightfully weigh down _her_ shoulders. If only she hadn't gotten caught...

"Hikari?"

Hikari turned all her attention away from her thoughts as she realized Daisuke was staring up at her with a serious expression. Which was yet another word that didn't fit Daisuke's personality. "Yes?"

Daisuke averted his gaze to the colorful patterns on the roof tile and slowly began tracing them with his index finger. "Do you -- Do you think Taichi knows what he's doing?"

Hikari smiled. It was no secret Daisuke looked up to Taichi as, not only a role model, but a big brother figure as well. Well there's no shocker there, Daisuke's like a miniature clone of Taichi, a bond was imminent. "Daisuke, as Koushiro always states "he never knows what he's doing". But, to answer your question with a different perspective, I think he did what he thought was the only solution."

"Getting himself captured was the only solution?!?!" Daisuke demanded, finally rising to his feet.

Hikari narrowed her eyes, "The only one he could come up with apparently." There was an icy venom in her voice that kept Daisuke from interrupting. "Daisuke, Taichi wouldn't throw a battle like that unless he had a reason. So don't you dare contradict him! He did what he had to in order to allow the rest of us the chance to escape!"  
Daisuke stared at the young woman with a befuddled expression. Hikari had never yelled at him like that. Sure there were the occasional threats whenever he would cling to her but they were all in good fun.  
Hikari stopped glaring at him and slowly unclenched her fists, "I...I'm sorry Davis." She turned away from him to conceal the tears that were beginning to well within her eyes. Daisuke walked over to her and pulled her into a hug where she cried into his shoulder. Hikari was just as devastated as he was, if not more, but she was trying to be strong, trying to help everyone else cope with the loss of their beloved leader.  
**What was he doing?!! What was he thinking!?!** He wasn't the only one that lost someone important! Hikari just lost the most important person in her life, the only remaining member of her family, her older brother, her best friend, and she was proving stronger than he was.  
"I'm sorry, Kari."  
Daisuke turned his attention away from her again as he recalled the instant his leader and friend was taken away.

_TTTTTTT Flashback TTTTTTTT _

Ken smirked at the defiant glare he was receiving from the Prince of Thieves. "I win Taichi, I _always_ win."

"Go to Hell." Taichi spat, keeping an eye on the point of the blade that was currently aimed at his neck.

Ken's smirk broadened, "I'm already there." He stepped forward so the tip was beginning to pierce the skin on his neck, "And I'm dragging you with me."

Several Ichijouji soldiers formed a semi-circle behind the Prince of Thieves, each had a dangerous looking weapon clenched in at least one of their pudgy hands.

"The question remains, Taichi, are you planning on going quietly?" Taichi could hear the soldiers crouch in a battle stance and tighten their grip on their weapons. "Or do you plan to test me further and put up a fight?" The blade was pushed further into his neck, drawing just a small amount of blood.

Taichi rolled his eyes, "Must you make everything so dramatic." He sighed and smirked. "Come now Ken, haven't we been through this before? When do I ever go quietly?"

Apparently Ken suspected this to be his reply because the next second the soldier stationed directly behind Taichi thrust his sword toward his back. But, to the shock of all seven men positioned behind him, he seemed to read the mind of the man behind him and step to the side. With the man's arm dumbly hanging in mid-air, Taichi had no trouble disposing of him by grasping his forearm and throwing him into the next soldier that decided to make a move.

He smirked; two down, five to go.

One of the soldiers raced towards him and tried to grab him from behind, but Taichi ducked and withdrew a dagger from his boot, spinning around to face the man he then thrust the short blade into his shoulder, ushering a scream from the large man. Taichi pulled the dagger out and kicked the man to the concrete floor.

The soldiers left must've had some brains in their large meaty heads, though, because once his previous victim fell one of the four remaining grabbed Taichi by his injured arm and pushed him onto his back. Taichi winced as the back of his skull slammed against the ground with enough force to send stars dancing across his line of sight. As he tried to stand up without increasing the horrible throbbing that was already thundering through his head like a war drum, one of the soldiers grabbed him from behind, pinning one of his arms to his side and the other behind his back.

"Let go!" he raged as he tried to free his arms, but this man had to be huge; his arms were so large they could probably wrap around his frame twice! The man's grip only strengthened in reply to his command, causing Taichi to take a sharp intake of breath as he felt his ribs cracking beneath the pressure, which added to the already unbearable pain his cut-up stomach was sending throughout his body. The next thing he knew he felt the sharp edge of a knife pressing against the skin on his neck once again.

Ken chuckled, "It never ceases to amuse me when I watch you fight."

Taichi narrowed his eyes, "Tell your man here to loosen his grip, unless you want to drag back a corpse."

Ken's eyes lit up, "Now there's an idea. Your sister would make a fine addition to the corpses hanging around the dungeon...I'll place her right by your cell and --"

"Shut the hell up you **sick bastard**!"

"Ah, ah, ah, now there's that temper again. Still don't have complete control over it, it seems." A wicked grin spread across his face, "I'll have to put you back in your place."

Taichi clenched his fists and slammed his feet into Ken's chest. "**My place**, your almighty prince of **fools**, is stepping all over your sorry ass."  
Ken stumbled backwards clutching his already bruising stomach, glaring fiercely at the Prince of Thieves and the two soldiers who stood staring with slack jawed expressions. "What are you two **_IMBECILES_** waiting for!!! Lock him up!!" he spun around and turned his attention to the captain of the Takenouchi guards, "Tell my father and the Takenouchi rulers to move into the other carriage."

"Yes Sire."

"And as for you," Ken spat, turning back around to face the Prince of Thieves who had an arrogant smile plastered on his face, obviously very pleased with his previous actions, "You're going to wish you never crawled out of the rock you've been hiding under." Ken unsheathed his own dagger and plunged it into the younger boy's shoulder issuing a pained yelp from the Prince of Thieves.

The rest of the Thieves were all witnesses to the events taking place not too far away, and when they saw Ken stab their friend Yamato tightened his grip on his "borrowed" horse's reins and urged him forward.

"Yamato stop." Koushiro commanded, grabbing the blonde by the arm.

"Izzy are you mad! Let me go!"

"No! Matt, don't tell me you didn't notice?!"

Yamato stopped, "Notice what?"

"How easily Taichi was caught. You and I both know he wouldn't have fallen for a trick like that!"

Yamato turned to face him, "So what do you think he's doing?"

"Giving himself up."

"WHAT!?!!"

Koushiro retained a calm exposure, "Taichi still has his dagger in his hand, if he wanted to escape don't you think he would've used it by now?"

"He's right," Jyou murmured, "It's still behind his back! If he wanted that guy to let him go, he wouldn't even have to move his arm he'd just reposition the knife in his hand!"

"Exactly." Koushiro stated, "But now the real question is, why?"

Yamato turned to him, "You don't think --"

"It _would_ be the perfect opportunity."

The trio was left in an unsure silence.

On the one hand they could follow Taichi's unspoken orders and go back to the hideout to continue with their plans for the ball. This option had many positive aspects, including the major attribute where they could all escape without any serious injuries...but it had a serious disadvantage as well. No one was eager to leave Taichi behind, especially in the clutches of their most hated enemy...but all knew they'd face Taichi's wrath if they didn't listen to his orders...and no one was coming up with anything better...

"Fall Back!" Yamato yelled.

He received numerous dumbfounded replies and disbelieving gazes, but he ignored them all. They all knew that in times when Taichi was out of commission Yamato was in charge and whatever he said was to be followed without question. Slowly, the obedient thieves began running away from the battleground, every now and then they'd glance behind them to see if Yamato changed his mind...but he didn't.

Daisuke jumped off the roof and raced into the nearby alley, he wasn't going to leave unless he was sure Hikari and Takeru were safe. He pressed his back against the wall and peered around the corner, just in time to see Takeru slam his knuckles into the face of the young man that had Hikari in his filthy hands.

When Hikari jumped upon Yamato's horse and Takeru joined Koushiro they raced off, and Daisuke knew they were safe now. He spun around, fully prepared to disappear into the alley of his choice, when a familiar voice caught his ear.

"Oh! And Daisuke!!"

Daisuke froze, that was the last voice he expected to hear.

"Don't forget about our wager! I'll expect you to _meet_ our terms!" Taichi bellowed over the noise the soldiers were now creating.

Daisuke stood there, puzzled. _Wager?? What Wager??_ Confused beyond logical reasoning, Daisuke dashed back up to the roof hoping Taichi would give him another clue as to what the hell he was talking about. Sadly, though, he was only able to get a glimpse of the soldiers placing a heavy iron lock on the handles on one of the carriages.

Daisuke furrowed his brows. Why would Taichi use his final seconds of free speech to remind Daisuke of a wager he never even made?

He settled himself on the rooftop and gazed deeply at the guards as they gathered up the corpses of their men and the fallen weapons and began loading them into the carriages. Daisuke vowed, as he watched them, that he wouldn't leave this spot until he figured out what message Taichi was trying to send to him.

TTTTTTT End Flashback TTTTTTT

So here he was, still sitting on the same perch he chose three hours ago.

Hikari's crying had ceased and now the two were staring at the previous battlefield, where the shops had reopened and all the usual customers had returned. Dotted around the square there were small groups of people; gossipers, no doubt discussing the over-exaggerated details of the fight.  
"I saw his face!! It's true what they say! His eyes really are red, defiantly a pawn of the devil himself!""Oh please! You can't expect us to believe that! I heard from Old Man Akamaru, who swears he saw the whole thing, that he's no older than the Ichijouji Prince!""Yes, but Old Man Akamaru is a loony! You can't believe a word that crazy man says!""My daughter says she saw him, she says he was quite the looker.""Nonsense!! My husband states that he was an old man with a crooked leg!"  
Ah, the adoring public.  
Daisuke had to crack a smile, he and Taichi would often stand amongst the crowd and listen to all the new rumors about him and the rest of them, it was actually quite entertaining. The thought of Taichi suddenly made the smile on his face vanish. He turned to Hikari, and in a quiet voice said, "He was trying to tell me something...before they --"

This withdrew Hikari's attention from the gossiping older women, "Really?"

"Yea, that's why I haven't left yet. I'm trying to figure out what meeting he was talking about."

"Meeting??"

"He said something about a wager, then said he expected me to meet his terms, but he put an emphasis on "meet", so I think he wants me to go to a meeting or something."

Hikari stared at him, "What was the last thing you and Taichi discussed?"

Daisuke placed his elbow in one of his hands and tapped his chin with the other, "Hmm...OH! Who would look worse in a skirt; Yamato or Takeru." he said, beaming slightly.

Hikari stared at him, "Why were you -- You know what! Never mind! I don't want to know." She sighed, "What was the last _**important**_ thing you discussed."

Daisuke opened his mouth to respond but Hikari quickly intervened, "And don't say your last answer _was_ really important, because it's not."

Daisuke's smile faltered a bit and he crossed his arms across his chest in a slight pout, "Fine. The last _important_ thing we talked about was --" His eyes suddenly grew huge. "Oh my God, I GOTTA GO!! Bye Hikari!! I'll see you at dinner tonight!!"

Hikari watched his back as he sprinted across the rooftops. "Hm. He must've figured it out." She turned around to walk off the roof when a thought crossed her mind, "Wait!! DAISUKE!! WHAT DID YOU FIGURE OUT!!" She spun around and began to chase after the rapidly disappearing outline of her friend.

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

"Give me the names of the ones responsible for this!"

"No! I gave them my word I wouldn't turn them in. Plus _Einstein_, I don't know their names!"

"You stubborn wench! I could care less about this _girl_, but when someone steps out of line in _my_ kingdom they're properly punished! Otherwise the citizens might suspect they've got a bit of leash, and then they'll be as disorderly as _your _Takenouchi!"

"Bite your tongue you spoiled bastard!"

This was the scene Mimi was awakening to. Wonderful, right.

Mimi had to resist the temptation to roll her eyes. They were too busy arguing to notice her eyes flutter open and her torso leave the hospital bed she was laying on. She watched them for several minutes, seeing the fire in both their eyes as insults worthy of a sailor were thrown back and forth. She wished she had a way to record this for future laughs.

She placed a hand to her mouth and coughed, a polite way to gain the attention of the two arguing royals, but it didn't work. So she tried again. Still no reaction. She glared at the duo, finally coming to the end of her limit of patience and shouted, "Guys!"

Sora and Ken both jumped and spun around, shocked to see her fully awake and more or less in moving condition. Sora was instantly at her side, hugging her best friend. "Oh my God Meems. I was so worried about you! Please don't you ever do anything like that ever again!"

Mimi looked at her friend with a befuddled expression, "Sora I'm fine, really. Why do you look so upset? I wasn't hit _that _hard."

Sora released her friend and looked at her with furrowed brows, "Mimi --"

"Just give her a damn mirror." Ken spat, taking his leave. The last thing he wanted was to watch the reunion between two best girl friends, ugh! Sickening stuff. Not to mention he didn't want to hear that girl scream when she sees her --

"AHHHH!!!!!"

Ken cringed. Apparently he wasn't far enough away yet.

"Mimi it's not really that bad!" Sora said, trying to comfort her best friend.

"Not really that bad!! Sora! My face is black and blue!!"

"Technically it's only your cheek." The only reply she recieved was a depressed wail that was, luckily, suppressed by a pillow Mimi's face had collapsed into. "Oh come on Mimi, it doesn't hurt much, right?"

"Yesh, bu I ook idious."

Sora struggled to understand what she was saying through her muffled sobs, "Mimi you don't look hidious."

"Yesh I oo!"

"No you don't!"

Mimi raised her head slightly, "You promise?"

Sora smiled, "Yes. And if you want, we could just cover it up with a little make-up. No one will ever have to know."

Mimi smiled and jumped to her feet. "Okay then!"  
Sora shook her head, it amazed her how quickly Mimi's mood could change. She went from angry, to confused, to depressed, and now she was happy, and this all occurred in the course of a few minutes.  
Mimi began proceeding out of the hospital wing when something occurred to her, freezing her in her tracks. "Sora!! What happened back there!!"

"What?"

"The battle!! What happened?!?!"

"Oh, Ken won and --"

"WHAT!!!"

"Wait, let me finish! Ken won and he took the Prince of Thieves to the dungeons. Why?"

Mimi felt a wave of panic bubble within her breast. No, no, no, no, NO!!! It can't be! Taichi wouldn't come back to this place for ANYTHING! "Sora, are you sure?"  
"Yes."  
"Completely positive?"  
"Yes."  
"Absolutely cer--"  
"Meems! I know what I saw. They locked him in a carriage and brought him to the dungeons."  
"And you're sure he didn't escape?"  
"Yes. I watched them escort him myself. Why are you so interested anyway?"  
"I just...uh...don't want that criminal to be running around while you're here. He could cause loads of trouble for the ball and that would be a horrible way to begin your visit." Mimi quickly lied. She silently congratulated herself on the perfect lie. It was believable and Sora didn't seem to suspect a thing.  
"You're lying."  
Damn. "Lying?"  
"There's something going on in this city that you're not telling me about. And I think it has something to do with you and the Prince of Thieves."  
Mimi knew she lost her composure for a few seconds after Sora stated this fact. Sora was a very smart girl, but Mimi was desperately hoping she wouldn't figure this out until she was ready to tell Sora about her secretive past. She was already too close for Mimi's comfort and Mimi was tempted to drop to her knees and allow everything she'd been keeping from her best friend to explode from her panic-stricken heart and plead for the forgiveness she knew she didn't deserve.  
"Sora. I promise I will tell you everything at the ball. Everything about me, my friends, my family, everything. But will you give me a little time to get my head straight before I do so?"  
Sora crossed her arms over her chest, and Mimi was reminded of a mother who had just discovered her daughter sneaking cookies out of the cookie jar before dinner. "You have until the ball, and no later."  
Mimi nodded and smiled, "You won't be disappointed!!"  
Sora smiled too, "I better not be. After all these secrets you better have one hell of a story to tell."  
"Oh believe me, one hell of a story is exactly what you're going to get."

TTTTTTTTTTTTTT

"Hn, it just seems so...quiet."  
"I know. It's like there's an absence of life in this place."  
Jyou and Michael were sitting across from one another at a round table that could seat about eight people. They were in the kitchens, each enjoying their preferred drink; Michael had a steaming cup of black coffee while Jyou was sipping on a warm cup of tea. Both were pouring over the notes about their strategies and each Thieve's position during the invasion of the Ichijouji castle. There were maps Koushiro was able to uncover from who knows where that showed secret entrances, unguarded rooms, and even the location of a few secret rooms that were used for hording items of immense value.  
"I don't know how Koushiro does it, but it makes me glad he's on our side."  
Jyou smiled, "I agree."  
"Excusez-moi."  
Jyou lifted his head at the familiar french accent and smiled warmly. "Good evening Catherine."  
"Good evening Jyou, Michael. I hope I'm not intruding on anyzing."  
"Not at all." Michael said smiling. He motioned to the empty seat to his left as a silent invitation to join them.  
Catherine smiled and slowly shook her head, "I am afraid I do not have ze time to chat. I merely came to ask if eizer of you have seen Hikari. Zere are a few details zat still need to be looked over for ze upcoming raid, and I can not find her anywhere."  
"Hikari?"  
"Umm...Last I saw her she went to go cheer up Daisuke."  
Catherine's smile faltered a bit, "How iz he?"  
"We don't know." Michael sighed. "No one's really talked to him since...um...well no one's seen him."  
"I hope he iz okay. Daisuke iz not ze type to dwell on sad topics, and we could all use him right about now."  
"Tell me about it." Jyou murmured as he leafed through another set of blueprints. His eyes began scanning the important document, but it held no major differences than the other twenty he had already examined. He took a sip of his drink and scanned the lower portions of the castle; the kitchens, dungeons, servants' quarters, etc. He was about to set the paper down when something caught his eye.  
He placed his drink down and brought the blueprint closer to his face to study it. He let out a low whistle, "That's interesting."  
Michael and Catherine paused their conversation and looked at him with curious expressions. Jyou grinned widely as he set the document on the table and pointed to the area he noticed.  
Michael gasped, "Is that --?"  
"Yep."  
"Then he --"  
"Precisely."  
Catherine glanced from one boy to the other, "What are you two talking about?"  
Jyou proudly pointed to the area again; the dungeons, but more accurately, a single cell which had been circled. At the bottom of the parchment someone had extended the blueprints further, adding a secret corridor beneath the stones that led to the outside world.  
Catherine gasped, "Who wrote zis?"  
Jyou's grin broadened, "That's the interesting part. This is none other than Taichi's hand-writing."  
Michael turned to him with an incredulous look, "Taichi's hand-writing? Why would he write something like this down?...Unless..."  
"He knew he would be caught even before we left!" Catherine finished.  
"Exactly."  
"But that doesn't make any sense." Michael stated, taking the parchment from Jyou and gazing at the ink marks intently. "If he knew he'd be caught then why didn't he do something to try and stop it?"  
"Because that was exactly what he wanted."  
The trio turned to the kitchen doors to find Koushiro and Hikari standing in the doorway. Koushiro had a knowing smirk on his face and Hikari looked equally pleased.  
"Elaborate Izzy." Jyou said sharply.  
"Isn't it just like Taichi to leave us in the dark about something until the last possible second." Koushiro pulled up one of the seats beside Jyou and Hikari followed suit. "Taichi wanted to get into the castle for a mission of his own."  
"Why would he do that?"  
"Who knows." Koushiro shrugged. "I'm guessing he has some sort of undercover plot he's going to attempt at the ball."  
"But why wouldn't he tell the rest of us about it?" Michael questioned.  
"Apparently," Hikari started, "he did." She pointed to the circled room on the blueprint. "The question remains, though, who did he tell."  
The room was silent.  
"My first guess would be Yamato." Catherine suggested.  
Hikari shook her head, "Yamato's as much in the dark about this as the rest of us."  
The kitchen was suddenly captured in a strange silence as all the occupants mulled over the idea of who it could be. It was suddenly broken, though, when Jyou started chuckling.  
"Isn't it funny that Taichi can be just as annoying when he's not here, as he is when he is here?"

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

Taichi was pissed.

In his short absence apparently he and his friends became celebrities amongst the soldiers and castle guards, and celebrities were never treated with the polite, sophisticated behavior they were greeted with in _**our**_ century.

Celebrities were either visiting royals (who had little respect from the guards since they swore to serve the Ichijouji house) or wanted criminals. Taichi obviously fell into the latter category.

He had only been in this God forsaken place for about a day and already he had bruises upon bruises upon bruises. He scowled as he inspected a particularly nasty one that was beginning to turn strange colors that he didn't even believe the human skin could change into. Sighing, he dropped his arm and stared at the bars on his door and glanced around his accommodations; no furniture whatsoever, although there was a pile of hay in the corner (Taichi hadn't planned on going anywhere near it, it was probably populated by a city of rodents and insects). The walls were barren, with the exception of a few shackles and broken chains, and the floors were relatively clean...compared to a sewer.

He shifted against the wall opposite of the door, he was sitting below the window, trying to find a small amount of comfort from the sunlight that was shining through, but he didn't receive any. His mind was too preoccupied with ignoring the jests and jeers he was receiving from off duty guards that had nothing better to do than provoke and tease him.

"So tell us, _Prince of Thieves_, where's the real guy, there's no way a punk like you could be the most wanted criminal in Ichijouji."

"Yea, he's probably only in here for the attention."

Taichi's eyes flashed with fury and he glanced at them with enough viciousness to shut them up for a few seconds.

"Wow, was that your battle face, that was _real_ scary. HaHA! I'm sure you couldn't scare the rats in your cell." Boisterous laughter followed this insult and Taichi felt his blood boil to the point that he was beginning to loath these people almost as much as Ken, a feat which _no one_ had _ever _been able to reach.

"If _you're_ the biggest threat to the kingdom then we've got nothing to worry about!"

"Yea, what's the royal family thinking?!"

"There's no way I could believe it took seven elite soldiers to take this guy down. Look at him! A scrawny street rat that probably couldn't pick up a sword, let alone wield it like a master." Taichi glared at this man, he had said most of the insults thus far and the Prince of Thieves was beginning to wonder if this guy had a death wish.

"So what really brought you here, boy? What possessed you to fake the identity of the Prince of Thieves and get yourself locked up in here?"

The leader, the man Taichi wanted to watch spontaniously combust until there was nothing left but smoldering ash, snorted. "Probably wanted to earn a little extra cash. Bet he has some family issues; his dad's likely an apothecary and I bet his mom's an alcoholic. Now that he's been arrested people will probably pay him not to rob them." He chuckled and turned his back on the prisoner to address his comrades. "Of course they'll be paying the wrong guy." Laughter erupted amongst the audience gathered, all led by the loudest and most obnoxious in the bunch. Suddenly that laugh was silenced by a loud crack and everyone's smiles vanished into terror filled stares.

"Anyone else want to make fun of me or my family?" The remaining guards and soldiers took one look at the man slumped against the door, his head was slouching at an odd angle and his collar bone was puncturing through the skin on his neck, and shook their heads vigorously. "Good. Now go ahead and tell that bastard prince you all love so much of what I've done. I don't give a damn. I've been through enough hell to be immune to anything that bitch could throw at me." His eyes flashed with, what the guards would describe as, Hell's fire, before he turned around and walked back into the darkness of his cell.

Taichi sighed as he leaned his back against the wall and listened to the hurried footsteps of the terrified men as they scrambled out of the dungeons and away from him_. Good, maybe now I can get some sleep before Ken shows up_. Taking advantage of this small amount of time, he leaned his head against the cool concrete and slowly drifted into an uneasy sleep.

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

"Blah blah blah blah blah!!"

"Blah, blah blah blah. Blah blah blah blah blah blah."

"Blah blah blah blah? Blah blah blah blah."

"Blah blah BLAH!! Blah blah blah."

"Blah??"

"Blah."

Sora stared at the two young women standing before her. It was so foreign to her, almost like they were speaking in another language that she wasn't gifted with.

Mimi and another palace guest were discussing what type of shoes they planned to wear to the ball that evening, but they were using so many different technical terms for it Sora couldn't keep up. To her, shoes were just that, shoes. They were made to keep your feet off the ground, and, at times, to look nice. Sora figured that as long as they were comfortable and matched the rest of her clothing to a certain extent they were not to be fussed over, but Mimi and this other girl were as similar to Sora in this sense as dogs were to beetles.

She watched them for another few minutes before realizing they were so engrossed in their conversation that they wouldn't notice if she sneaked out. Rising to her feet she quietly made her way to the door behind her, but, as she figured, the conversation the two were having was far too important and they didn't even glance up.

Sora grinned and raced out of the room and down an empty corridor. She ran down countless staircases and through an infinite number of courtyards before finally reaching the kitchens. She eased open the door with extreme caution before slowly slinking into the room. She scouted the room, and after a few moments of analyzing the area she nodded with satisfaction that the coast was clear. She silently crept past the giant ovens and other cooking utensils, about halfway into the huge rooms she caught wind of numerous voices joking and laughing not too far away. Panicking, she froze and prepared to be spotted, but to her relief she realized the chefs and sue chefs were enjoying the evening in one of the largest dining rooms in the palace. Lucky for them it was seldomly used, apart from large feasts during which they were all busy cooking.

Sora sighed and placed a hand on her chest to calm her racing heart. Remembering the mission at hand, she crouched against one of the hundreds of counters and slowly sidled against the edge. The door was just a few meters away, and if she could get through the room without making a sound she would have a few hours of freedom; away from Ken, away from the stress of the ball, away from her parents whom were constantly reminding her that she had a goal to accomplish, to make Ken fall in love with her.

This thought caused her to scowl, how on earth was she supposed to make that bastard fall in love with her when the very sight of him made her hands clench unconsciously and her stomach wretch.

She hated her parents for putting her through this!!

No...that's not true. She loved her parents dearly, she could never hate them. She just hated this horrible situation they forced her into. She sighed, but it couldn't be helped now could it.

By now Sora was only a couple of feet away from the door leading to a small courtyard and already her hand was reaching outward, eager to grasp the handle of the door in front of her. Her fingertips brushed against the cool metal of the doorknob and she smiled as it filled the rest of her hand. Slowly, she pushed it open and almost screamed with jubilation when it swung on its hinges without making a sound.

Stepping forward, she took one glance behind her before stepping into the cool twilight air. Taking a deep breath she smiled and began to walk forward through the neatly manicured green grass. She was taken off guard that the Ichijouji palace had such a beautiful place tucked snugly amongst the rest of the evil of the foreboding city when she arrived with her family and Mimi. And since her arrival she had made every excuse she could think of in order to escape to the tranquility of the small courtyard. It was her little island of happiness in an ocean of dread and horror.

Smiling broadly, she walked further into the glade where two trees towered over the rest of the area, and even soared over a few of the towers. Her smile faltered a bit, the leaves and pink blossoms only reached about a quarter of the way, leaving the remaining branches reaching skyward like twisting skeleton arms. She was puzzled as to why the first time she stumbled upon this place, but then she remembered how much fear influenced this place, and having a lush green tree sprouting through the center of the core of that fear wouldn't exactly help Ken's cause.

Sora rolled her eyes at the thought of her arrogant and cruel fiance, but quickly pushed all thoughts of him aside. She was determined to enjoy the short amount of happiness she had been granted.

Forgetting about all her lessons in etiquette and demolishing the image of her mother's frown, she kicked off her heels, ripped off the ends of her dress, and raced towards the nearest tree. She leaped upward, catching a low branch, and swung herself upon the thick arm of the tree. She smiled as she knelt on the branch, her hands were scratched and thin slivers of bark were cutting into the skin on her feet but that only increased her excitement. She brought her hands behind her head and grasped the ribbons and ties that were holding her hair up and ripped them out of her auburn locks. Tossing them into the wind, she resumed scaling the tower-like creation of mother nature. She grinned as she felt twigs and leaves entangle themselves within her hair while the bark continued to cut into her skin, blistering her toes and fingertips. Smaller branches whipped her face and stung her cheeks, but the minor pain only increased the wish she had buzzing in her head.

Freedom.

The one thing her parents' wealth and power couldn't give her. The feeling she's always been deprived of but always longed to experience. The thing she wanted more than anything in Ichijouji.

She paused her ascend and looked over the castle to the world beyond; the hundreds of little houses were slowly losing their solid shape as dusk continued creeping across the purple sky, lamps were being lit and candles were burning bright within the homes, the dwellers of the houses would pass by the windows or doors, making the light appear to be twinkling, making the ground seem more like the evening sky. She closed her eyes and imagined herself floating through the cosmos where stars glittered everywhere.

"SOOOOOORA!!!!"

Sora sighed as her imagination melted back into reality. She narrowed her eyes and glared at the ground, but a smile almost instantly found its way back to her face.

"HEY JERI!" The younger girl grinned and waved before rushing over to the tree and climbing it. Sora almost envied Jeri at times; Jeri was one of the serving women in the palace, she mainly brought out all the equisite meals prepared by the chefs and during grand feasts she walked around offering wine and other beverages. Sora was fortunate enough to meet her during her first few days at the Ichijouji palace. Jeri was a very kind and thoughtful girl and gave Sora and Mimi a few valuable pieces of advice when they first became acquainted with her. But unlike Sora and Mimi, Jeri lived outside of the palace, and, therefore, had freedoms Sora had never experienced.

"Good evening Sora." Jeri greeted as she plopped on the branch opposite of her friend.

Sora couldn't help but grin, Jeri's smile was so contagious, "Good evening Jeri, did you go visit Takato?"

Jeri sighed at the thought of her boyfriend, "I did, but he was so down. His whole family was! I gather that something happened to Ta -- his older brother!"

"His older brother's name is Ta?"

"No. Ummm...so what have you been up to today?"

Sora raised an eyebrow at how quickly Jeri wanted to change the subject, "Not much, just avoiding his royal pain in the ass and listening to Mimi plan her outfit for the ball."

Jeri giggled, "She's been planning it all week hasn't she. Haha, I'm glad I don't have to worry about what to wear, the Prince assigns us a uniform depending on color schemes and the event taking place."

"Consider yourself lucky."

"I do." Jeri grinned, "So are you excited?"

Sora's smile faltered, "Not really."

"Oh Sora I'm sorry! I forgot! He's announcing you being engaged at the ball, right?"

"..."

Jeri was prepared to lean over and hug her friend's shoulders, but Sora's silence wasn't a sad one.

"I'm not going to marry him." Sora stated with fierce determination. "I'm going to escape this horrible place." Jeri gawked at her. "It's all planned, Mimi and I are going to leave tomorrow just before the ball ends, when everything is chaotic and no one will notice we're gone."

"But -- But what about your parents?!?!"

"My parents...they cared about me at one point. But now they're too busy _telling_ me what's right to _listen_ to what _I_ think is right. I refuse to let my life be lived for me." She turned to her friend, "Jeri, will you help us?"

Jeri was still desperately trying to take this all in while keeping a serene face. She was not known to handle pressure well. She took a deep breath to calm her nerves and looked Sora in the eye, searching for any sign of regret or hesitation. She found none. "I will help. But I'm very limited to what I can do. I'd offer you to stay at my place but that's the first place they'd look for you."

"Don't worry about it. Mimi has friends here that might be willing to take us in."

"Then I'll secure a path for you through the kitchens. There's another door that leads outside that you can take. The chefs here all enjoy your company and I'm sure they won't hesitate to allow you passage through there. And if Ken grows suspicious they can blame their ignorance on the fact that they were too busy cooking to notice anything out of the ordinary."

Sora almost jumped due to the happiness bubbling within her, and she probably would have if she weren't in an almost seven story tree. "Thank you, Thank you, THANK YOU!! Jeri you have no idea what this means to me! Thank you so much!"

Jeri smiled, "You're welcome." Then a nervous glimmer entered her eyes. "Ummm...Now can we please get down from here? I...ummm... hehe, forgot that I have a terrible fear of heights."

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

The day had arrived.

That was the first thought on everyone's mind that morning as they stretched and dressed and rubbed the sleep from their eyes. The entire kingdom was up at dawn to make the day perfect; the people in first class were all preparing their outfits and hair, commoners were scrubbing the streets and hanging streamers, flowers, and lanterns everywhere, and even the lowest in the social standings were taking the day off from thievery and begging to enjoy the day.

It was very uncommon for anyone below the First District to be invited to an event like this, but the citizens of Ichijouji weren't about to let an opportunity to party slip through their fingers. Feasts were being prepared in every bakery, meat house, and food cart, musicians were polishing their instruments, and mothers were ironing their sons' and daughters' best clothes for a night of celebration and fun.

Mie Matsuki was humming happily as she opened the door to one of her enormous ovens to check on a cake she was currently baking. Smiling, she placed two oven mitts over her hands and careful brought it out of the coal heated iron dome. Inhaling the intoxicating aroma, she sighed and carefully placed it on a counter to cool. She reached upward and opened a cabinet to remove a froster when a little bell announced the appearance of a customer.

"We're closed!"

"It's me mom!"

Mrs. Matsuki poked her head out of the back room where all her creations were made to see her son leaning over the counter with a small smile. "Takato! Oh it's so good to see you!" She rushed over and embraced him in a bone-crushing hug. "How are you and all your friends? I've been going out of my mind with worry since I hadn't seen you, Hikari, or Taichi all week. I heard about that run in you had with the Prince and I must say that although I abhorre violence I have to commend your performance at bloodying that foul Prince's nose."

Takato smiled, "Thanks mom, but I didn't really do anything at all."

Mrs. Matsuki noted the sadness in her son's voice and released him from her embrace of death. She held him at arms length and studied his face; disappointment, sadness, and fear were all visible to her. "Takato what's wrong?"

"I'm guessing you didn't hear the ending of our heroic tale?" Mrs. Matsuki's blank face was answer enough. "Mom, Tai was caught."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"...Mom?"

"..." Mrs. Matsuki said nothing as she placed a hand on her head and collapsed in one of the chairs by the register. "Ohhh, I knew something had happened. Call it mother's intuition if you will, but I _knew_ something terrible happened. I could feel it in my bones." Sighing she turned to look at Takato, who was staring at her with immense feelings of concern. "Have you planned a rescue mission?"

"Well...here's the weird part. Koushiro, the really smart guy I told you about, thinks Taichi...gave himself up."

Mrs. Matsuki cracked a smile, "Well, if Koushiro thinks so, then we have every reason to believe him. Taichi will be fine, I'm sure of it. The way you speak so highly of the elder members makes me trust them with my little boy."

Takato rolled his eyes and glared at his mother, "Mom."

"Yes I know, you're a teenager." She giggled, ruffling his hair. "Well, on a happier note, how is Jeri?"  
Takato crossed his arms over his chest and sighed, "I think she's mad at me."

"Why?"

"Well, because when I saw her yesterday I was upset about Taichi and well..."

"She noticed?"

"Yes."

"So she left?"

"Yes."

"And you haven't spoken to her since?"

"No."

Mrs. Matsuki wanted to slap a hand on her forehead, sometimes her sons could be so dense, "She wants to give you time to deal with what was bothering you. She's waiting for you!"

Takato blinked. "What?"

She groaned, "Go see her. I bet she's in town somewhere preparing for the feast at the palace. Apologize and forget about it."

Takato instantly brightened, "Thanks mom!"

"Anytime." she called to his retreating back. When the door slammed shut she chuckled and went back to her cake. Sometimes all a situation needs is a mother's gentle guidance.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Ken smirked from his dais. The final touches to the decor within the ballroom were being made under his careful supervision. Everything had to be perfect.

The black and white marble floors were polished so effortlessly they gleamed like mirrors. A long and exquisite mahogany table was stretched just below the thrones, where the more important guests would chat and feast. The table was covered in a long midnight blue tablecloth and silver plates, candlesticks, and eating utensils rested wherever a chair was placed. The chairs were also wood, but along the elegant backs, which had spiraling, curving patterns and the arms slivers of silver could be seen painted within the flawless carvings.

Just past the long table was a large empty space just below an extravagant chandelier, where flowers, large glittering stars, and lanterns were hanging throughout the ceiling but low enough to be in view. Even higher above, there were tight ropes and swings for the acrobats. This was the area saved for the dancers where all matters of merry-making could be acted upon. To the left was a small stage where the musicians would play, and to the right was a small table where beverages and small appetizers could be enjoyed.

Further back were numerous smaller round tables for the unimportant guests that were there simply to fill up space. Flowers decorated each table, and the cheap china was being used for these simpletons.

CRASH!!!!

Ken cringed and balled his fists. "I was just beginning to relax!" He turned his fierce eyes on the young girl that had stumbled clumsily and broken several dishes. She was still on her hands and knees, keeping her face downward as she quickly picked up the broken pieces of glass. "Do you realize the cost of those plates you just shattered?"

The girl, still keeping her head bowed and remaining on her knees, turned towards him. "F-Forgive me Your Highness."

"Forgive you?" He leaned forward in his throne as a wicked grin crossed his otherwise handsome features. "Tell me girl, if I forgave _you_ what would I have to do to everyone else everytime they messed up?"

""F-Forgive them too?"

"Very good. Now, if I forgave everyone what would happen?" This time the girl remained silent. "They would start to think that they could get away with anything, and it wouldn't be long until I was up to my ears in problems that could easily be avoided if I carry out the proper punishment for you."

The girl shuddered as she realized there was no escaping the Prince's wrath.

"Guards." Two muscular men appeared on either side of his throne the moment the heard his call, reminding the young girl of two well trained dogs that would report to their master's every beck and call. "Sentence this girl to a punishment worthy of her crime."

With curt nods, the duo marched over to the girl, hoisted her up by her forearms, and marched away.

Ken sighed, he always wondered why people were so incompetent. "You." He pointed to a passing serving man, "Clean this mess up." The serving man sprung to attention and dove to his hands and knees to continue the work the girl had been forced to leave unattended.

Ken placed his forehead in his hands and sighed. Great, now he was in a bad mood, and on the night of _his_ party.

Rising to his feet he passed his cold eyes over every life form in the room, daring any of them to make a mistake in his absense, before calmly striding out of the grand ballroom.

Now he needed something to cheer him up. Running through all the lists of possible ideas that would make him immensly happy, he realized that most of his usual favorites wouldn't be possible due to the preparations for his ball. His bride-to-be would be surrounded by serving women all day, so annoying her would be out of the question. Raging at the chefs might jepordize the schedule his father set up, and, consequently, the meals might not be ready in time for the feast. His father...well spending quality time with his father would probably send him spiraling into an even fouler mood than he was already in. All the maids were busy cleaning...

He was beginning to get frustrated. There had to be _something_ to do.

"You're joking!"

"No. I'm dead serious, he killed him! Just like that." The soldier snapped his fingers to emphasize the point.

Ken paused as he picked up the conversation. _Hmm...this sounds interesting_.

"How?"

"Broke his neck. Snapped it in half. I saw it with my own eyes."

"It just seems so...impossible. A _kid_! And he took out the Captain _behind_ bars?!"

"Yes! Amazing isn't it! No one's bothered him since."

"Excuse me gentlemen." The soldiers froze. "But I couldn't help but overhear..._who_ snapped the captain's neck? And why wasn't I immediately informed?"

"Your Highness!!" They cried in unison, their hands flying to their foreheads so fast Ken was surprised they didn't cut a gash into their heads with their metal clad hands.

Ken's cold eyes slowly glanced from one man to the other. "Yes, well formalities are always important, but when your Prince demands answers you shouldn't hesitate to tell me every last detail."

The two soldiers glanced at one another, their hands still saluting. "Sire?"

Ken's eyes darkened sufficiently, "Don't play dumb you oaf. Tell me everything, or I'll have you hanging from the gallows."

"Forgive me, Your Highness, but I don't have all the details...I wasn't there."

Ken glared at him, "Oh? But weren't you just telling this man that you saw it with your own eyes?" The soldier broke out in a cold sweat. "So...you were either lying to a fellow officer, a crime worthy of fifty lashes, or you're lying to me, a crime punishible by death."

"I -- I was lying to my fellow officer, Sire. Forgive me."

Ken sighed, "Somehow I knew you'd say that." He looked up from examining his nails and motioned for the soldier to remove his sword from his sheath. "I'm afraid I'll have to strip you of your post." The soldier looked up at him with horror filled eyes. "B -- But Sire! I have a wife and four kids! I can't be fired! I ca--!"

The other soldier held back a terrified yelp as his comrade's head rolled across the floor and his body slumped forward before collapsing to the ground. Ken thrusted the blade into the second soldier's hand, blood still dripping from the edges and tip. "Now. _Who_ snapped the captain's neck?"

TTTTTTTTTTTTTT

"Quit hogging the mirror!!"

"There's more than one bathroom!! Besides, this is mine, Hikari's, Takeru's, and Taichi's! Go use your's!"

"I can't! Koushiro and Catherine are in there!"

"Well then you're just going to have to wait."

"Hell no! You've been fixing your hair for hours! I bet you're single-handedly keeping the world's supply of hair gel dangerously low!"

"Take that back Miyako you nerd!"

"Nerd!!?!?! Why I ought to --"

"GUYS!!!"

The arguing teens immediately ceased their glaring compitition and turned to the doorway. Standing with her hands placed firmly on her hips and a smal crease in her brows was none other than the beautiful Hikari.

Yamato smiled as he walked towards his best friend's sister, "Hikari, my dear, you're truely a vision of loveliness."

She blushed, her anger suddenly subsiding. "Ummm...thank you Matt, but this dress is really nothing, it's one of Mimi's old ones that she gave me before she left."

"Don't be so modest." Yamato chuckled. "Has my brother seen you yet?"

Hikari giggled. Her dress was a soft pink color that hugged her waist before fanning out around her legs. The pink fabric parted at the front, similar to that of an arched window, revealing a white underskirt. The upper part of the dress hugged her torso in all the right places, while the sleeves were rounded and stopped just below her shoulders. Around her neck she wore a necklace with a pink flower made of Alexandrite, her prized possession that Taichi had given to her for her birthday one year.

"You'll attract every guy's eye at the ball, well, apart from mine." Yamato said. If it weren't for his composed and cool nature he would be jumping for joy right about now. After all, he hadn't seen Mimi in years, and he missed her terribly. When she left, Yamato lost a piece of himself as well, a valuable piece that he felt empty without.

He could vividly remember the day she left.

TTTTTT FLASHBACK TTTTTT

Mimi, Taichi, Hikari, Takeru, Jyou, Koushiro, and himself, the origional thieves, were standing outside a local diner, awaiting the carriage that would seperate one of their dearest friends apart from the rest. It was raining, and each of them were wrapped tightly in cloaks and shawls, trying to find some form of warmth in the soaked fabrics. The night was freezing, being late into the fall season, and Koushiro concurred it would probably start snowing that evening.

Mimi stood before her friends -- no, her family. The people she hadn't been apart from since she met them. She loved each and every one of them and if it wasn't for the great opportunity she was being offered and the constant nagging from her friends, she, doubtlessly, wouldn't be waiting for the royal carriage to take her miles away from the only home she'd ever known.

"Don't worry Meems. The Takenouchis are _way_ better than the Ichijoujis, and the princess is our age. You'll be fine."

Mimi looked away from the cobblestone street where she expected to see galloping horses drawing an elegant carriage any second now. She turned her attention back to her friends and smiled. It was just like her best friend to be able to read her mind. "I hope you're right Taichi."

He smiled broadly and Mimi giggled at the sight; his hair, soaked, was sticking to his forehead, while his clothes, which were baggy and ragged from life on the streets, looked about three sizes too big on his skinny frame.

"And if you ever need us, we're just a letter away." Jyou said encouragingly. Jyou's glasses were cracked and lopsided and he was constantly adjusting them. He took shelter from the wind by standing next to a lit lampost, so he wasn't nearly as drenched as the others.

_But that's Jyou for you,_ Mimi thought_, Always practical._

"Promise you'll come back to see us?" Hikari asked. She was standing next to her brother, so, naturally, she was soaked as well. She was clutching his hand and staring at Mimi with her light brown eyes that were pleading for Mimi to agree to the promise.

"Yea Mimi, we'll miss you." Takeru said, coming up beside Hikari and taking her other hand.

Mimi smiled with a motherly affection at the youngest members of their group. "Of course I'll come visit. I have to make sure your brothers don't kill each other once in a while, don't I."

This made Hikari and Takeru grin, while Taichi and Yamato rolled their eyes. "Oh please. We all _know_ Yamato has no chance at killing _me_." Taichi winked at Mimi to signal he was only teasing the elder blonde.

Yamato shoved him slightly, before turning his eyes on his girlfriend. Even in the rain she looked breathtaking. The light from the overhead street light cast an almost angelic glow around her and Yamato felt a sharp pain in his heart. The first time he felt this horrible sensation he had no idea what it was, then he investigated the time and place he first felt it and realized what the pain was caused by; his heart was breaking.

Mimi was leaving.

It was just that simple. And although Taichi and the younger two had an optimistic perspective about her returning, Jyou and himself were more...realistic. The chances of her coming back were slim to none. He had never heard of a lady in waiting getting vacation days to visit friends and family. Life just wasn't like that. It was cruel and unfair...and now it was taking one of the few things that made it enjoyable.

He turned to look at her, still silent. Their eyes met and Mimi could see the cold, determined grey eyes drift away from her's. She opened her mouth to comfort him, to tell him that this wouldn't be the last time they saw each other, but the faint sound of trotting horses made her whip her head back to the street. Her ride was here.

She smiled sadly at her friends. "I'll miss you guys."

"You promised to write." Koushiro pointed out, hoping to bring a little happiness back into the solem group.

"Every day." Mimi agreed, smiling weakly. She placed her suitcase down and walked into the center of the small group, where they all embraced her in a group hug.

"We'll see each other again Meems, I promise ." Taichi whispered. He was the last to release her from their group hug, and, if Mimi wasn't mistaken, she noticed the back of his hand brush his eye as he stepped back.

It was this action that made Mimi almost break down right then and there. Taichi NEVER cried! He would be furious if he knew she noticed, but it reminded her how much she was going to miss him. After all, she, Hikari, Taichi, Yamato, and Takeru hadn't been apart since they met...

"Come along Miss. You're expected in Takenouchi in three days time, and we must be going." The carriage driver said, placing his pocket watch back into the shelter of his coat.

"I'm coming." Mimi said. She picked up her suitcase and began walking away when a voice, the only one that hadn't said anything, stopped her.

"Don't forget about us."

Mimi stopped in her tracks, tears beginning to make her vision swim. "How could you, even for a moment, think I could ever forget you guys, Yamato?" She turned around and saw, to her surprise, all of them were in tears, even if a few were trying to hide them. Dropping her suitcase uncerimoniously, she raced back to them and hugged them, sobbing. "I couldn't forget you guys even if I wanted to. I love all of you." She turned to fully face her boyfriend, "And no matter what happens, Matt, no matter the distance between us, you still have something that will keep me here in spirit."

Yamato looked at her blankly, "And what might that be?"

She smiled and pointed to the left side of her chest. No words were needed. She gave him a quick hug and a peck on the cheek before climbing into the carriage and rolling out of sight.

TTTTTTT END FLASHBACK TTTTTTT

Yamato smiled at the bittersweet memory. And he was so thankful that his assumptions were wrong.

Yamato blinked as his mind returned to the present. He chuckled slightly as he realized how long his flashback must've taken. Takeru was now standing beside Hikari, his cheeks were so red Yamato almost collapsed to the floor laughing. "Like what you see Takeru?"

Takeru suddenly turned his awe-struck eyes off Hikari and narrowed them into the fiercest of glares his angelic face could muster. He didn't say anything, knowing that if he did he would either offend Hikari or add more reasons to his brother's teasing. Deciding that the best way out of this would be to change topic he quickly groped for a new subject other than his affection for the gorgeous, wonderful, kind, sweet _-- Damnit!!_

"Hey guys, are you ready to go to the palace?" Koushiro asked from the doorway.

Takeru spun around and almost hugged him, "I'm ready to go. If Yamato would just finish with his hair."

This rekindled the argument between Miyako and Yamato, and Takeru and Hikari took this as a hint to exit the room to save themselves from further teasing. But the duo couldn't help but snicker as pieces of their argument reached their ears and brought the other thieves away from preparations to place bets and enjoy the show.

"FRICKEN NARCISSIST!!!"

"IMPATIENT GEEK!!!"

"TAKE THAT BACK YOU BASTARD!!!"

"HELL NO!!"

(Glass Shattering)

"HEY!!! YOU COULD'VE HIT ME!!!"

"THAT WAS THE POINT DUMBASS!!!! HEY!! GIVE ME BACK MY GLASSES!!! I CAN'T SEE WITHOUT THEM!!"

"THAT'S THE POINT MORON!!"

"I'M GONNA STRANGLE YOU YAMATO!!"

"IF YOU CAN FIND ME YOU BAT!!"

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

"Had enough yet boy?"

Taichi was laying on the floor face down. His fists were clenched and his eyes were screwed shut against the agonizing pain he was desperately trying to oppress.

"Kid, I asked you a question. Or is the Prince of Thieves too good to answer for himself."

Taichi still didn't reply. Every muscle in his body ached from his vicious treatment. He had been expecting this for days, after he killed that man, but he couldn't prepare himself for the horrible pain he had indured for the majority of his life.

"I asked you a question you bastard! I won't be ignored by street scum like you!" The man raised his leg back and slammed it into the side of the beaten youth.

Taichi's hands reacted involutarily and he grasped his foot before it could do any serious damage. The elite soldier, taken back by this, stumbled before toppling back onto his rear. "You! You filthy street rat! You'll be lucky if any of your vermen friends recognize you when I'm through with you!" He jumped to his feet and unraveled the leather coil he had been grasping. Taichi gritted his teeth as he followed the cruel device with his eyes as it flew behind the enraged elite. He tensed as he braced himself for the blow that was rapidly speeding towards his abused back...but it didn't come.

Opening his eyes he looked at the soldier. His eyes were bulged and his mouth was slightly agape, the whip still positioned for attack. He sighed as his eyes were immediatley drawn to a knife protruding from his chest, "Thank you Meems."

As if on cue the soldier fell forward and a green blur raced towards him. "Oh my God Taichi. Are you alright?"

He smiled weakly. "Peachy." He slowly lifted himself off of the floor, grunting in annoyance at the amount of strength he'd lost.

Mimi smiled as she knelt beside her best friend. "Here, let me look at your wounds. The last thing we want is for them to get infected." She moved behind him and carefully examined the deep slashes crisscrossing across his back.

"Just like old times, huh."

Mimi looked at his face and saw a small, but genuine smile gracing his lips. "Yea. Too much like old times if you ask me." She placed a hand on the deepest slash on his back and lightly ran a hand over the raw and bloodied flesh. He yelped and she couldn't contain the bit of laughter that escaped her throat, "Quit being such a baby! You'll live through these, but Hikari might be another matter."

"I'm not a baby." he mumbled with his arms crossed over his chest.

She giggled at his actions, before cuffing him on the back of the head. "What were you thinking you dumbass!! I'm sure everone's worried out of their minds about you! Do you realize how scared you must've made everyone! Damnit Taichi, do you realize how scared_ I_ was when I heard what happened! I swear if you died, I would've killed you!"

Taichi smiled at her choice of words, "I've missed you too Meems."

Mimi's anger melted at that smile. Not wanting to injure his back any further than it already was, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a fierce hug. "It's been too long Tai."

He chuckled, "Yea, but you're still as beautiful as ever, I bet Matt will go crazy when he sees you."

Mimi's cheeks flushed with happiness, "You think so?"

"I _know_ so."

She giggled, "Well, you're not so bad yourself."

"Oh yea, covered in dirt, blood, and bruises, I'm a real Prince Charming."

"You are!" she laughed, then her eyes widened, "Oh my God, if _you've_ gotten this good looking, can you imagine Yamato!" She swooned dramatically.

Taichi rolled his eyes, "As beautiful and _shallow_ as ever." Mimi shoved him playfully. "So Meems, what are you doing down here?"

Mimi shrugged, ignoring his serious tone, "I came to make sure you were okay. We both know, too well, about Ken's hospitality. He's been treating Sora horribly, so I could only imagine what he's been putting you through."

"Sora?"

"Oh! Sora's the Takenouchi's daughter. She's the one I've told you about in my letters." She smiled, "I think you'll really like her; she's smart, and pretty, and nice and --"

"Get out!'

"No I'm serious! She's the whole package!"

"No, Mimi. _Get out_, someone's coming." he whispered.

Mimi lept to her feet, ran out of the cell, and locked it. She had just enough time to hide the key in a piece of bread she brought with her and slide it under the door as two armed soldiers rounded the corner.

"Excuse me Miss, but I'm afraid you don't have the athorization to be down here. These criminals are dangerous and we wouldn't want a young lady getting hurt."

"Oh! Forgive me gentlemen. But, if I may ask, why have you locked up and tortured this poor boy. He's probably no older than me."

Both soldiers glanced at one another uncertainly, "That boy, miss, is the legendary Prince of Thieves; the most dangerous criminal we have with us."

Mimi jumped away from the cell in terror, and Taichi silently commended her acting skills, "The Prince of Thieves! My God! But he's just a kid!"

"Exactly what makes him so dangerous. People underestimate him all the time. Speaking of which." he walked up to the cell door and sighed at the sight of another commrade slaughtered at the hands of this monster. He turned to his commrade, "Escort the lady to the upper floors, then request for his Highness. This is the fourth man dead, and I'm sure the Prince would like to punish him personally this time."

Mimi chanced a glance at Taichi, who had retreated to the back of the cell, he had his arms wrapped around his legs and his chin resting on his knees, his eyes were so fierce Mimi, for a split second, felt a small flicker of fear for these guards. Taichi was such a fun, wonderful friend that it sometimes took her by surprise when she saw him for the terror inspiring Prince of Thieves that he was known and feared for being. He glanced at her, and his eyes softened, returning him back into her best friend. He gave her a quick wink, signalling that he'd be alright and, with reluctance, Mimi nodded and proceeded with the guard.

She clenched her hands when she heard the door to his cell slam open and the destinctive sound of leather on flesh. She knew Taichi wouldn't scream, no matter how much pain he was suffering, he was just far too stubborn.

"Are you alright Miss?"

Mimi nodded, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand, "I'm fine." she stated with as much determination as she could muster. The duo continued silently down the dark, dank corridors, Mimi desperately trying to ignore the jest and jeers coming from other jail mates as they watched her best friend go through hell.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

The castle was in a state of absolute chaos. The evening the city had been counting down the days to had finally arrived!!

Servants were scurrying from table to table with trays littered with brillantly decorated food and elegant glasses of wine. These palace slaves recieved no thanks for their efforts, merely scurried about with their eyes downcast, trying not to draw attention to themselves.

The commoners had a few similarities to the working staff; they, too, avoided drawing attention to themselves. But unlike the servants the commoners were guests and were able to enjoy themselves remotely. They stood in closely knit groups as they gossiped, laughed, and tried to ignore the frequent glares of the palace guards.

Next came the fabulously wealthy upper class citizens. They were unlike the previous groups mentioned in every aspect. They wanted all eyes to be focused on them. Ladies sauntered across the dance floor with their beautiful couture dresses of every color. On each finger was an expensive gem of some type, and on every bare patch of skin there was some form of expensive fabric or jewlery with the brightest, most brillant jewels money could buy. While men sported vallient suits of gleaming armour that belonged to some distant relative that fought in an important war and brought honor to their family name. Swords of every size and shape hung at their belts, each fashioned from expensive metals such as bronze, gold, and silver, and as an added extra for those that loved showing of their money, a few of the hilts had glittering stones embedded into the stunning blades. In fact, these tools looked so dressed up Sora was curious to know if they would serve up to their expectations and be able to fend off a five-year-old let alone an entire army.

Sora found the whole scene hilarious, and, to be blunt, she was laughing her ass off.

To spectators, this was very peculiar behavior for someone in the presence of Prince Ichijouji, and she was earning several odd glances from passing nobles and palace staff, but the laughter wouldn't cease!

In between her fits of laughter, Sora realized that the blame didn't fall entirely on the strange show that was her society. In fact, if she were to blame on person in particular the accusation would fall to her best friend.

Mimi, in her beautiful emerald green gown that hung on speggetti straps with silver trimmings was definately a vision of lovliness the evening of the grand ball. A silver belt hung around her hips (a fashion statement that was raising many eyebrows), and, hiding a good portion of the upper part of her face was her silver eye mask which arched upward from her eyes and expanded, and, to add a little glamour to it, the entire top hem was studded with diamonds of all shapes and sizes. Her hair hung around her shoulders with curls here and there, and a silver locket, her most prized possession, glittered around her neck. Her bruises were covered by a thin layer of make-up that Sora herself had applied, and the facial coloring wasn't noticable at all, something that Sora prided herself on.

But it wasn't Mimi's appearance that was making Sora laugh, it was her actions.

She was sitting a few chairs away from her on the other side of the table, so she was in perfect view of the bored princess. She would stand up, walk about three paces away from her chair before freezing and scurrying back to her seat the way a child that was caught trying to sneak away from a lecture would. Then she would squirm uncomfortably in her chair, turn down a few young men that had enough courage (or arrogance) to approach the beautiful young woman, and repeat the process again, all the while looking over her shoulder for signs of blonde hair. The spectacle was so entertaining Sora almost forgot she was in the Ichijouji palace.

"Will you shut that annoying laugh of yours! You sound like a baying donkey!"

_Almost_ being the keyword from her last statement.

Sora turned her fierce eyes on the young man sitting beside her. "Baying donkey, huh? Tough words coming from someone who looks like one."

The wine glass in Ken's hand paused just before reaching his mouth. He calmly placed the elegant piece of dining ware on the table and turned his head to get a clearer picture of his queen-to-be. She wore the same sky blue dress she had been wearing the first time he encountered the stubborn wretch, only now it had a couple more alterations; a tear had been made at the hem leading up to her thigh (apparently the girl had had trouble walking before) that gave a nice view of her legs, and second, the billowing white sleeves had been cut off and made into a shawl that was covering her bare shoulders. Her eye mask looked like two blue swan wings placed together and were also studded with diamonds and sapphires that matched the belt she wore.

He sneered, forgetting about her attractive qualities and focused on her less than appealing mouth. "What did you say?"

"I said you look like a jackass." she replied with the simplicity of talking about the weather.

Ken's eyes widened behind his silken black eye mask in absolute rage. He was prepared to slap her when his father stood up next to him and started that annoying cough once again. Ken rested his head in his hand and slowly shook it.

When the chattering of fellow diners and his father's coughing finally died down his father grinned toothedly and spread his arms open in welcome. "Welcome guests to my splendid home!" A polite round of applause issued after this announcement, as well as another fit of coughing. Once the King regained his breath he continued, "As we all know, this wonderful masquerade ball is dedicated to my son and his fiance, who will be getting married in two weeks time." Another round of applause and coughing. Ken sighed as he offered his father a hankerchief to cough into, sadly realizing that they were going to be here all night if this was the rate at which things were going. "Yes, well, pardon my horrible cough. Anyway, but there is not only cause for celebration today because of my son's wedding, but also because this will be the day the greatest threat to our kingdom hangs from the gallows."

As the King began coughing again, this time there was no clapping. Quiet whisperings errupted around the hall as talk of the battle a few days ago was resurfaced.

"Ehem. Yes the rumors are all true! The monsterous Prince of Thieves has been caught! And with his death the resistance will slowly crumble before the awesome might of the Ichijouji kingdom! You may all rest assured."

Sora glanced down the table at this news and noticed how the color in Mimi's face had drained.

_What the hell --?_

"Now I know how much this blood thirsty killer has affected so many of you, so today --" Another fit of coughing. Ken growled in annoyance and stood up.

"After the festivities, we plan to have some, hm hm, _fun_ with the Prince of Thieves."

At this announcement from the Prince there were many cheers coming from the upper tables, but very few coming from the back. Sora wondered why before realizing that the back tables were the poorer citizens that probably didn't have anything the Prince of Thieves would want, so they might not even know who he was. Satisfied with this answer, she turned to survey the ballroom again, looking enviously at the other happy masqueraders. She sighed, reminding herself that by the time the night was over she would be among them in their carefree sense of living.

Being reminded of her plan, she glanced at the knife she had been using for her dinner and, after making sure everyone's focus was on something irrelevant, carefully slipped it into a napkin and placed it in her lap. It could come in handy later on.

"Sora."

Sora looked up, panic on her face at the thought of someone catching sight of her action, then she let out a sigh of relief. "Hey Jeri."

The younger girl smiled behind her simple midnight blue mask, a silver tray balanced expertly on her hand. "Having fun?"

Sora gave her a look before motioning to the table she was currently seated at, "Oh yea, these guys are the life of the party."

Jeri giggled, then dropped her voice to a low and serious tone, "I asked the cooks and they are fine with it. Anytime you're ready."

Sora nodded, "Thanks Jeri. I owe you one."

Jeri winked, "Oh! I almost forgot. Would you mind telling Mimi her guests have arrived."

Sora smiled, "Not at all."

Jeri nodded before saying a quick goodbye and walking back into the throng of partiers.

She stood up from her chair, ignoring the screech the wood had against the floor, and skillfully maneuvered her path through the fabulously dressed aristocrats.

Upon reaching Mimi's seat at the elegant table Sora was panting, it wasn't easy being graceful in high heels. She was tempted to throw them under the table and shove her way through the partiers...but she knew her parents were keeping an excedingly close eye on her. The last thing they wanted was to have her embarass them in front of the height of society.

"Hi Sora." Mimi said with bubbly enthusiasm.

"Hey Meems," Sora smiled in return, then a sneaky smile appeared on her lips, "I just heard some...promising information."

Mimi blinked, "Oh?"

"Yep," Sora grinned.

"Well, what is it?"

"Something Jeri told me," she said as she examined her nails.

Mimi jumped out of her chair and put her hands on Sora's shoulders, "Are they here!! Oh my God Sora they're here aren't they!!"

Sora shrugged, "Maaaaybe."

Mimi watched as her indifferent mask cracked beneath a brillant smile that told Mimi more than Sora's words could. Mimi squealed in delight, causing several people around them to stare at them with disgusted looks. Mimi, ignoring all the whispers, grasped her best friend's wrist and plundged into the crowd.

"Okay Sora, just look for blonde hair. He stands out like a sore thumb amongst _these_ people." Mimi instructed as she scanned the heads of all the people she passed.

Sora giggled, "Alright Meems, but don't you think we'd find him faster if we split up?"

Mimi stopped and spun around, "That's a great idea! Okay, I'll keep looking around the dance floor, you can look at the dining area."

Sora clapped her heels together and saluted, "Yes Sir!"

Mimi glared jokingly at her, "Well, it's good to see you back to your old self."

Sora grinned and gave her friend a quick wave before proceeding to the back of the room.

The back of the room, Sora immediately noticed, was, in her opinion, _**loads**_ better than the area she had just left. She knew the social ladder of the room, how the people surrounding her were the poorest of those invited, but as she scanned the room she felt a wave of relief wash over her. Here, the people were having fun! There was dancing, laughing, children running about, it was an actual party!

Sora smiled as she continued her task. Glancing from table to table she realized she was recieving more looks from those she passed by than was comforting. At every table she passed by the talking would pause as the men at each table sat gawking and the women either glared at their husbands/boyfriends or stared enviously after her. Sora suddenly felt out of place and awkward. She casted her eyes downward in an attempt to try and block out the stares, but she could still feel them drilling holes through her skull. Her face was burning and she knew it was turning red from all the unrequired attention she was recieving. She was tempted to turn around and run back to the hell she just left, but something stopped her.

Blonde Hair!!!!!

Her eyes lit up and she began rushing to see if the one she spotted was the famous Yamato that she was so excited to meet. Her happy attitude returned, she wasn't paying any attention to her surroundings any more and that was when she felt contact with the top of her foot. The next thing Sora felt was her stomache dropping as the floor rushed to meet her. Her arms instinctively flew out to catch her, but her palms weren't met by the cold, hard surface of the floor, instead she felt a hand grasp her wrist and another wrap around her waist to save her from her fall.

"Are you alright?"

Sora felt the blush return. The voice was definately male, and judging by the tone he had to be around her age. "I-I'm fine. Thanks." She felt the man's hand on her waist tighten as he pulled her to her feet.

"No problem. I was just in the right place at the right time." His hands released her and Sora turned around to get a better look at the one that saved her from embarassment. Her eyes widened very slightly_. Damn he's cute!!_

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

me: YaY!!! ANOTHER CHAPPIE DONE!!! AND ANOTHER CLIFFY!!!! Ooooh, so who do yo all think it is??? (claps excitedly) I know! I know!!!! (grins) But I'm not telling, you're just gonna have to read the next chapter of my awesome story

Davis: (cough) Concieted (cough)

me: (glares) Am NOT!!! (pouts) ANYWAYZ!!! REVIEW PLZ!!!!! Reviews are better than cookies, and i LUUUUUV cookies . LATERZ!!!!

**CS**


	5. Dancing with the Devil

me: GUESS WHAT!!!

Davis: You're updating!!

me: NO!...Well, yes, but I FINISHED THE NEW HARRY POTTER BOOK!!! AAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

Davis: Was it good?

me: (points at caption above) What do you think?...IT WAS AWESOME!!!! AHHHH!!! The Best book I've EVER read!!!

Davis: How long did it take you to finish it?

me: THREE DAYS!! YaY!!! So, now that I have finished reading it I knew it was time to get back to my stories!! HOORAY FOR YOU GUYS!!!! lol. AND GUESS WHAT ELSE!!! I PROMISED IT AND I'M KEEPING THAT PROMISE!!! BE PREPARED FOR TAIORANESS!!! YAY!!!! But (grins evilly) although I'm sure some of you will figure out a few of my twists, the real question remains will any of you be able to fill in the gaping holes I've left between these twists?

Let's find out shall we! READ!!!! OH!! AND REVIEW!!!! PLEEEEEASE REVIEW!!

I'd Like to thank those of you that reviewed my last chapter!!:

**dbzgtfan2004**

**jerseygrl90**

**JJ Chow**

**TerrorizingTaiora11**

**Cursive Obsession**

**AngelSachiya**

**Crazy With Happiness**

**M M Forever**

**Lady Something**

I LUV YOU GUYS!!!!!!!

Okay, ON WITH THE FIC!!!!

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

_**Things are not always as they appear...**_

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

_**Last time**__: Hi Everyone, it's Hikari. Well, life definately hasn't been the same since Taichi left...I still can't believe it! Everyone's taking this really hard; Daisuke, Yamato, Takuya, Koushiro...everyone. The atmosphere has gotten so unbearably depressing since his departure, but, the crazy thing is, we think he might've gotten himself captured on purpose!! Why? We can only guess, but Koushiro found evidence that states Taichi knew about himself getting caught before the battle even began, and he told someone. So far no one has come forth to admit they know of Taichi's plan, I just hope they know what they're getting themselves into...Taichi's plans are usually dangerous, and I'd hate to see one of my friends get hurt. _

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

"Why are they all staring at us?"

Catherine giggled as she observed her flustered friend; her cheeks were a lovely shade of scarlet and, out of sheer embarassment, she had averted her eyes toward the ground in a feeble attempt to block out the penetrating gazes of passerbys. "Relax Hikari, zey just think you are," her brows furrowed slightly as she searched for the right words, "...how do you put it...très magnifique! Very beautiful!"

Hikari's blush deepened. Although she was very comfortable being the center of attention amongst her friends, when she was recieving looks from people she had never even glimpsed because they found her extremely attractive it made her feel uncomfortable and awkward. "Thank you Catherine, but I'm sure they're staring at you just as much, you look wonderful as well."

"Merci. Thank you." Catherine grinned. She was quite stunning in her scarlet gown; the dress was sleeveless and showed off her creamy shoulders, large gold hoop earrings dangled from her ears, and her blonde hair was tied back in a single strand down her back by red ribbons. But although her dress was stunning, her eye mask was the most fantastic piece of her outfit; it was gold and had elegant red flames painted throughout the glittering gold material, it almost seemed to shimmer like fire. Needless to say, she was a relishing sight for any single man with good taste.

Catherine carefully studied her friend's face for a few moments. It didn't take long for her to uncover traces of the emotions she knew Hikari had been hiding; Saddness...pain...fear.

Catherine smiled sadly as she gently squeezed her hand. "Hikari, I am sure he iz fine."

Hikari raised her head, "Catherine, no offense or anything, but you don't have the faintest idea of how much hatred there is between Ken and my brother."

Catherine blinked in surprise. Well _that_ wasn't the answer she was expecting. "Umm...no offense taken...But Hikari, you don't zink Ken would do anyzing hor'ible to Taichi, do you?"

Hikari narrowed her eyes, but before she could respond a blaring sound interrupted their conversation, as well as everyone else's.

Hikari covered her ears with her hands, an irritatied scowl on her angelic features. "This can't be good."

Catherine nodded in agreement and the duo quickly rushed towards a wall so they wouldn't be trampled by the crowd that wanted to know what all the fuss was about. When they found themselves safely standing in a seculded corner, Catherine figured it was as good a time as any to discuss the mission. "So when do we begin phase two?"

Hikari smirked deviously, "When we find Mimi, I'm sure she knows our true purpose for being here."

Catherine nodded, "Then let us locate her quickly. I'm sure zat the younger members are getting restless, and we can't afford any miscalculations."

"Which is why Yamato and Taichi assigned Koushiro to keep an eye on them." Hikari agreed.

Catherine sighed, "And zank goodness for zat." She smiled a little when Hikari laughed. "Come on Hikari, perhaps Mimi joined the crowd over there. I also vould like to know what has captured the attention of so many."

Hikari nodded and the duo linked arms before braving the insane tide of people. The two of them maneuvered tactfully towards the front of the dance floor before being roughly shoved aside by a burly guard. "Clear the way!!" Catherine and Hikari were thrown backwards into the throng of people, but they managed to catch a glimpse of what the guards were leading.

"Tai!!" Hikari screamed before the crowd swallowed her up, Catherine following a moment later.

The duo found themselves being shoved backwards as they were crammed between opposing forces; those trying to reach the front to see what the ruckus was all about, and those that were acknowledging the soldier's commands and trying to step back.

"Hikari!" Catherine cried as the waves of people separated them. The blonde felt simultaneous waves of panic wash over her as she was dragged further and further away from her friend. She tried, desperately, to fight the current of people, but the more effort she used the further away she seemed to drift.

"Catherine!!" Hikari screamed as she fought her own way through the fierce crowd. She threw her arm in between two elderly ladies' heads, issuing crude remarks from the old bats, and tried to force her way between the crowds, but it was no use. Her mind might have been light years above most of these people, but she didn't have a huge supply of strength. She growled angrily as she fished for her friend, but so far her hand remained without the catch.

THERE!!!

Hikari almost sighed with relief when she felt a familiar hand grasp hers. "I've got you Catherine!!"

Catherine tried to hang on to her outstretched hand, but just as she was beginning to feel safe again someone suddenly grasped her shoulders and pull her further away. "HIKARI!! HELP!!" She fought against the person who had enveloped her in a tight hug, but she stopped upon hearing his voice.

"Catherine! Hey! OUCH! No need to kick me there!"

"Michael??!!?" she asked incredulously.

"Yea, who'd you think it was?"

Catherine placed a hand on her thundering heart. She turned to him, her eyes narrowed and Michael knew what was coming. Sure enough, a string of French words started flying out of her mouth, and although Michael didn't understand a single phrase, he understood that if he had he probably would've still been hearing her cursing ringing in his ears for at least another week from their current time.

When she finally stopped, her breathing was ragged and she had her hands placed firmly on her hips.

Micheal smiled behind his green eye mask, "Feeling better?"

Catherine straightened and slowly nodded. "Yes."

"I'm sorry for scaring you."

Catherine breathed a sigh of relief, "You are forgiven. I did not hurt you did I?"

"Well..."

Catherine smiled, "Oh don't be zuch a...how you say...infant?"

"Baby." Michael corrected.

"Yes, zat too."

Michael grinned. Catherine was still learning English from Koushiro, and often had cute little slip ups in her rapidly improving vocabulary. But, Michael and the other thieves didn't mind, after all, the only way to learn was to make mistakes.

"Now what iz it that has caused this mob? Hikari and I saw Taichi, but we did not have enough time to see what was hapening!" She gasped, "Oh no! HIkari! I lost her in ze crowd! Michael what iz going on?!"

Michael's face lost it's smile and his eyes darkened, "I'm afraid you won't like the answer, none of us will." When Catherine's face became, if anything, more determined, he sighed before whispering, "Follow me." He took her hand and intertwined his fingers with hers. Catherine felt her cheeks warm up, and she probably would've enjoyed close contact with the American boy if it wasn't for the urgency in his footsteps. Together they combed through the chaos that was the ballroom and Michael slowly led her to a door at the edge of the room. After squeezing through it, they rushed down an empty corridor that was scarcely lit.

"Michael! Where are you taking us?"

Michael turned toward her and placed a finger to his lips. Catherine understood, but there were so many questions buzzing in her head that she opened her mouth to ask him again, but she shut it instantly as the sound of hurried footsteps echoed around them. She grabbed Michael's hand and shoved him against a wall, "Put your arms around my waist, " she instructed as she wrapped hers around his neck.

"What?!?"

"In case we are seen." she whispered furiously.

Michael thanked every god he could name that the corridor was dark enough to hide his furious blushing as he conceded to her command.

"Hurry! They're bringing out the prisoner!"

"There's no way I'm going to miss this!! After he killed four guards, there's no way I'm going to miss Prince Ichijouji make a total fool out of him!"

"Yea!"

Catherine and Michael waited on baited breath as two soldiers raced passed them without even a second glance. When they heard the slam of a door shutting Catherine sighed and rested her head on his shoulder for a second. "Zank goodness." Then she realized the compromising position they were still in and the duo jumped apart as though scorched.

Michael laughed nervously before clearing his throat, "So, umm...shall we --"

"Yes. Yes." Catherine said nodding as she tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

Hikari, unaware that Catherine was in safe hands, was frantically trying to find her.

"Damnit." she cursed angrily. The moment they were separated Hikari fought the opposing currents and rushed to the area she last saw her friend, but so far she wasn't having any luck finding her_. This is getting me nowhere_!! She stopped as she considered all possible actions to take for this situation. One option was to keep searching for Catherine, who might be in serious danger, but then she might miss Yamato's signal and put their whole mission in jeopardy! But if she stopped looking for Catherine and continued with the plan Catherine could be hurt, or killed! And Catherine was far too valuable in her skills as a thief and a friend to be expendable. Finally she reasoned that she was screwed either way...unless!

Her eyes widened as she spun around and began shoving her way back through the throng of people toward the back. Now finding Mimi was even more essential than it was before.

She was walking as fast as the crowd and her high heels would allow her, and because of this factor she almost toppled over when a girl fell in front of her. Stopping in the nick of time she watched as a young man helped her to her feet. The young woman, Hikari noticed, was very beautiful; short auburn hair and brilliant crimson eyes. She continued walking until she caught sight of the one that helped the young woman to her feet. She froze and spun around, only to get caught in another group of masqueraders that were trying to make their way to the front to see what the commotion was all about.

She fought the crowd and tried to get another look at the young man, but when she finally managed to get clear he was gone!

_Must've just been my imagination_. she reasoned.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTT

The color in Sora's cheeks still hadn't subsided as she studied the young man before her, but the longer she stared at the attractive stranger, the warmer her cheeks were becoming. He was, in fact, probably the most handsome person she'd encountered all evening. He had spiky brown hair that seemed as untamable as her wild sense of adventure. Almost hidden behind a dark blue mask, his eyes were a beautiful amber color, and were so deep Sora figured if you stared at them long enough you would find yourself drowning in their beauty. An intoxicating smile was plastered on his lips that created an atmosphere of excitement that Sora found all the more entrancing.

Sora stubbornly shook her head, bringing her back to reality. Sure he was good looking, but that wasn't reason enough to lose all dignity and gawk at him.

"Umm...sorry about that, I wasn't paying attention to where I was going."

"No problem, it was entirely my fault." Seeing her confused expression he elaborated, "It was my foot that you tripped on." he said smiling bashfully.

"Wow, you must have fast reflexes." she said smiling.

He chuckled, "Well, you learn to be quick on your feet when you live in Ichijouji."

"Oh! So you live here?"

"Yes, although I'm not originally from here. I was born in Takenouchi."

Sora smiled, " Really? That makes two of us."

His eyes widened and he replied with an exaggerated amount of enthusiasm, "Wow, its uncanny how much we have in common."

Sora's grin broadened and she found herself laughing, "You enjoy making fun of people don't you?"

"Yes, and it happens to be only one of my many talents."

Sora could tell he was still joking and decided to throw her own witty remark into the conversation, "Many talents? Oh! Like your smooth talking?"

"Naturally."

"And your ability to make a girl like me fall head over heels for you." she batted her eyelashes in his direction before slamming her palm on the table in a disappointed manner, "Oh wait! Damnit that was because you _tripped_ me."

This time it was his turn to laugh and Sora was pleased to hear how wonderfully real it sounded. Not like those stuffy people who only laughed because they were afraid they'd be put in jail if they didn't. Mimi had been the only one she had been able to make genuinely laugh, but she was pleased to know that maybe she'd made another friend. They were certainly comfortable around each other, and they were talking as though they'd known each other much longer than a few minutes. Sora grinned, maybe the evening wasn't a _total_ waste of time after all.

Suddenly his eyes darted to the side and his smile faltered a bit. He quickly turned his attention back to Sora and asked casually, "Would you mind if we moved to the back, I'm afraid I just caught sight of a friend of mine that knows I'm not supposed to be here, he'll probably inform my sister and then I'll have to leave."

Sora shrugged, "It's not a problem with me, but why aren't you supposed to be here?"

"Well...throughout my entire family there's a strong hatred for certain types of nobility."

Sora nodded with immediate understanding "The Prince's type?"

"Exactly, and this hatred runs deepest in my sister and my blood, since we have the greatest reason to hate him. So, of course, all the guards forbade any of my family to enter this castle, but as you can see," he grinned, "we don't listen to the Prince's henchmen any more than we listen to the Prince himself. So the vast majority of my family is around here somewhere, but I'm not supposed to be here."

"Why?"

"Let's just say he's gotten away with hurting too many of my friends, and my family was afraid that I'd do something foolish if I got the chance to."

Sora nodded. She could tell he was being perfectly honest about what he stated, and she had to admire that about him. "Well, there's another thing we have in common, we both hate Ken."

He smiled, "Then I assume you don't want to marry him."

Sora smiled, "So you know who I am?"

"Sora Takenouchi, heiress to the great Takenouchi kingdom and fiance to the world's biggest prat." he replied with a small smile.

"Wow, someone's done his research." Sora smirked.

"Nah, that's just common knowledge. You're actually pretty popular here."

"Really? How so?"

"Your reputation, Sora, has reached this city and well beyond it. We hear things from visitors from Takenouchi about you; that you're kind, beautiful, and social standings don't control who you speak to or how you live your life. You give people here hope."

Sora blushed at the kind words, "Thank you..." she trailed off where she wanted to say his name, realizing they hadn't properly introduced themselves yet.

He smiled as he gently took her hand before rising it to his lips, "My name is Daisuke." He gave the back of her hand a quick kiss before letting it return to her side.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Ken smirked from his throne. Finally a little excitement to this boring ball!

The guests were assembling at the front of the ballroom after the irritating screams from the royal summoners' trumpets, but Ken wasn't giving them a second glance. His attention was focused primarily on the prisoner being led out of a dark corridor that branched out from the dungeons.

By now, the majority of the hall had been silenced by the arrival of the most famed criminal throughout all of Ichijouji. But seeing him now, the people felt strangely disappointed. The guards on either side of him were probably the only support that was keeping him suspended off the floor. His cloak still hid his face from their view, but you could tell by the way it hung off of him that he was scrawny beneath it.

"Citizens of Ichijouji!" King Ichijouji announced as he stood up, "I give you," he paused for dramatic effect as a cruel smile found its way upon his features, "the Prince of Thieves!!"

A chorus of negative comments followed this proclamation. The Prince of Thieves turned his hooded face towards the crowd and clenched his fists. He was, undoubtedly, glaring at them from beneath the darkness of the only possession he had with him.

"Now my people!" The King began, before being interrupted by another horrible cough.

Ken growled and stood up, "Those of you that would like to seek a little vengeance against our friend here, should line up. There is a fee, but I'm sure you will all agree that it will be worth acting on all your suppressed rage against this street rat!"

The partiers all glanced at one another, each wondering the same thing.

"Relax people," Ken started, as though reading their minds, "the Prince over here has been drugged, he won't be able to fight back with or without restraints." He snapped his fingers and the guards released him. The hooded figure, although fighting the effects of the drugs soon collapsed to the ground on all fours, too exhausted to remain on his feet.

A collective sigh of relief followed this example of Prince Ichijouji's power. The guards each grasped the forearms of the tortured youth and dragged him to his feet while the wealthy citizens fumbled with their purses and money sacks. It wasn't long before people began approaching the prince, cruel smiles on their faces and money bags in their hands.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

"Taichi." Yamato whispered as he heard the announcement made by Ken. "Damnit!"

Yamato hadn't been enjoying himself much. He still hadn't been able to locate Mimi and it was beginning to make him worry. He asked Jeri, Takato's girlfriend, to find her and tell her he was here, and yet she still hadn't shown up.

He bit his thumb in annoyance. He had the feeling she was right beside him but he was too blind to see her! Of course, there was the possibility that she had changed more than she led on and he could be staring right at her! Urgh! It was enough to almost make him tear his hair out...if it weren't for the fact that it was the only beacon for Mimi to find him.

There weren't very many blonde males at this masquerade ball, the only two he had seen amongst the growing masses was himself and his brother, and Takeru hadn't run into her yet either.

Scowling at his less than optimistic views, he grabbed a wine glass from a passing waiter and took a sip.

Yamato, not keen to be standing where flocks of people were beginning to shuffle past, began walking to the far end of the room, aloof from the rest of the party. He had nothing better to do until the proper moment where he could pass the signal to his friends. His job at the present time was to make sure all the inside jobs were running smoothly, namely that none of them were recognized. Of course getting caught seemed impossible thanks to the number of people this place was cram packed with, he was sure they were _at least_ one hundred people over capacity.

He ran a hand through his golden locks, he was patient to a certain extent, but seeing Mimi again had all his imperturbable qualities shoved to the very back of his conscious mind. Taichi had always teased him about being "Mr. Cool and collected" but around Mimi he felt those walls crumble to the ground, leaving a stuttering mass of weak-kneed, nervous, and flustered flesh.

Her beauty ran deeper than the outside, her heart was the purest of anyone he had ever encountered. She was the only one that could make his heart race while he was standing still, the only one that could make him fall in love with her all over again through a letter, the only one whose very thought could make him do_ this_!

He sighed, he was going soft. And he hadn't even seen her yet!!

That was the thought that entered his head before someone was pushed into his back.

"Oh! I'm sorry! The crowd just pushed me and I --"

Yamato rolled his eyes before turning around to reassure the person behind him, but when his body completely turned he felt the glass slip from his fingers.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

"Michael," she motioned for him to approach the edge of the glorious balcony that Michael had led her to.

Michael couldn't help but gin at the reminder of her expression when he finally revealed to her what their destination was. All around the ballroom were beautiful white marble balconies that were covered in liquidized gold and silver paint. The artists placed wondeful care into these works of art, and the paint was brushed on the stone in beautiful extravagant designs. Rich scarlet curtains hung behind each one, and a limited number of matching seats were stationed stadium style on the mahogany carpeted floor. Catherine's eyes had widened to the circumference of saucers as she walked tentatively around the beautiful room. She had squealed with delight and hugged him, causing his blush to return, but although he enjoyed the hug immensely the smile on her face was worth more to him than all the gold in Ken's palace.

But now, as he approached the edge he felt his smile vanish. "Oh no -- is that --"

"Taichi," Catherine stated. She narrowed her eyes and gripped the edge of the balcony. "Ken _vill_ pay." she spat.

Michael looked at her with concern, Catherine rarely got angry, but when she did all hell broke loose. He knew Ken was clawing at Catherine's old wounds by attacking Taichi. Sure, she was naturally closer to Hikari, being her best friend and all, but that made attacking Taichi all the worse. When Taichi was hurt, Hikari was hurt just as badly, which made Catherine all the angrier...but what was this strange feeling clawing at him like some ferocious animal?? Even now the creature was hissing in his head to allow Ken to continue with whatever he was doing to Taichi and keep Catherine up in this balcony with him...and ONLY him. He shook his head fiercely. This was maddening.

"Umm...Catherine?"

"Michael, you must find Yamato, the time to initiate part two of our mission haz come." She grasped his hand and raced down the spiraling staircase. "I vill signal Koushiro. You must alert the others."

Michael nodded. Koushiro had appointed Catherine to give the signal to the other group, she was sensible enough to know the right time to commence the second part of the mission. And it was Michael's job to keep her safe during the undercover part of the raid. Of course he had complied without the need of any convincing.

He agreed that this would be the opportune moment to give the signal; everyone's attention would be fixated upon Ken's cruel sense of amusement. He just hoped Taichi would survive long enough for them to get him out of there...

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Takeru should've been ecstatic!

Here he was dancing with the girl he had been crushing on since they were little, in a ballroom filed with happy, carefree people, and Daisuke was nowhere in sight to try and steal Hikari away from him!! But even as he numbered the countless reasons for him to be happpy, he still felt that something was...amiss.

Hikari must've sensed it too, since the next thing she said to him was, "Tk, I'm sorry...but my heart is too overwhelmed right now for me to be enjoying myself."

Takeru nodded, "No problem Kari, I've been feeling the same way too."

Hikari smiled at her best friend. "Come on, let's look for Mimi again."

Takeru laughed, "Do you think Yamato's found her yet?"

Hikari pondered the question for a moment before answering, "Have we heard any high-pitched screams?"

"...No."

"Then definitely not." Hikari grinned, "When Mimi sees Matt, she will definitely scream her head off."

"Good point." Takeru laughed.

"OH! Look! There's Miyako! MIYAKO!"

The lilac haired girl spun around in time to spot Hikari and Takeru waving at her. She smiled as she approached them, noting the startling factor that they were holding hands. "Having fun?"

The duo followed her eyes and jumped away from each other as quickly as their nerves could process what their brains hadn't comprehended yet. Fighting back the redness in her cheeks Hikari decided a quick change of topic was in order, "Yes, well...what have you been doing?"

"Looking for Daisuke, but I can't find him anywhere! I was hoping when I ran into you --"

"He'd only be two steps behind, yes we all know." Takeru finished, rolling his eyes.

Miyako smirked at his flare of jealousy, but decided to tease him about it in different company. "Right, well, obviously he's not, so I'm at a dead end again."

"We could split up and try to find him, Yamato, and Mimi." Hikari suggested.

"And Catherine and Michael," Takeru added. "If we can't find them we won't know when the next stage begins."

"Right, so Takeru go look for Daisuke, Miyako go find Yamato and assist him if he hasn't found Mimi yet, I'll look for Catherine and Michael. Meet by the stage in half an hour, whether you've found them or not." Hikari ordered. The thieves nodded briskly before rushing to follow her orders.

When Hikari was left alone again she took a sharp intake of air, she knew exactly what was keeping her from having an enjoyable time. She glanced sideways at the huge line that had built up over the last hour or so and scowled at their cruel faces. It was the knowledge that these people existed that caused Hikari's heart to burn with hatred. She learned what this line was for when she had given up her search for Catherine, and the very thought made her stomach wretch. People were _paying_ to hurt her brother! Paying money that could easily be given to people that would use it instead of throwing it away to harm a human being that did nothing to these detestable people to deserve such horrible treatment! Yea, Hikari was a little peeved about the whole situation, but luckily she noticed that the line was receiving numerous other glares from townsfolk she recognized as those that had been helped by the Thieves.

She knew none of their names, but silently blessed each and every one of them for this small rebellion against Ken. She realized she had never felt such gratitude for people outside her family than she did now, and she prayed that this feeling would continue when she knew they would need them again.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Mimi watched the glass hit the floor, scattering the rich red contents on her ankles and expensive heels while the shards hit the floor with a thundering force that sent them breaking into even more smaller pieces. The floor around the duo glittered as through a group of faeries had just passed between them, which, judging by _her_ expression, may have been the cause.

Normally in this type of situation, Mimi would be raging at whomever was clumsy enough to stain her clothing or consoling the poor servant that was cowering beside her muttering to her that they meant no harm, but she couldn't bring herself to do either at that moment. In fact, the only thing she _could_ do was stand stock still and stare with her mouth gaping.

"Yamato?"

The man standing in front of her had blonde hair and blue eyes, but as he stared at her, removing a white cloth from his sleeve to dry the tips of his shoes Mimi felt her hopes dropping.

"I'm sorry, who?" (a/n: HAHA!!! gotcha!! hey, dropping glasses is VERY common at parties...n-not that _I _would know, hehe)

Mimi closed her mouth and dropped her gaze to the floor, "Sorry, I mistaked you for a friend of mine." The man nodded in a forgiving manner before bustling away. Mimi sighed as she watched him, it was obvious now that that man wasn't her beloved Yamato; he was too old for one, and he wasn't nearly as handsome as she pictured.

Raising her head she began searching again, studying every face closely for any trace of her boyfriend, but with each step the only thing she was reminded of was the slight sloshing in her shoes and the wet hem of her dress. Growling in irritation she marched to the refreshment table to retrieve a napkin of some kind to dry off the cloth.

"Moron wasn't paying any attention...Priceless dress...damn stuck up rich people..."

Mimi muttered incoherently to herself as she removed her shoes and began to dab the velvet surface. She was furious, absolutely furious. How could he not show up! How could he not show up on the day she had been anticipating for weeks!!

_Has he found someone else?!? No...no, it wouldn't be that...next question. _

_Has he been assigned to a mission?!? No, that can't be it, in the cases where Taichi's out of commission he's placed in charge, unless the rules have changed which I doubt they have. And he wouldn't assign himself another role if there was a party he could attend._

_Or would he?_

Mimi shook her head. _He_ has _to be here. Jeri said he was!_

She inspected her shoes, confirming her fears; they were ruined. She dropped them to the ground and dabbed her eyes with the wine splattered rag.

She hadn't expected much!! Just...Well, okay, she _had_ expected a lot for their reunion. She had imagined it for so long that she was severely disappointed by the reality of it.

In her daydreams she imagined herself walking into a room where all eyes were on her, a beautiful room with flowers of every color hanging from every available space. The crowd would open up before her into a large circle, with one person remaining in the center. It was Yamato, obviously, and Taichi, Hikari, and her other friends were standing behind him with bright smiles and eager expressions. Mimi would move to the center and be embraced by her prince charming and...well that's as far as she'd gotten. Hey, being Sora's lady in waiting didn't exactly grant her much day dreaming time.

She began to wring the rag in her hands. She realized it was a lot to ask, but she would've been happy with just spending the evening with him...

She stomped her foot. But she couldn't even be gifted with that simple wish! Shutting her eyes against the rapidly forming tears, she gripped the table until her knuckles turned white. "Bastard Ishida."

"Bastard?"

Mimi jumped at the contact on her shoulder. She whipped her head around so fast she half expected to experience whip lash the next morning. When she was standing face to face with the one who had startled her, she screamed. "TAKERU!!!"

Takeru, although being crushed in Mimi's hug, managed a small chuckle through his strangled breaths. "It's great...to see you too...Meems."

Mimi giggled as she placed him on the floor. "Oh my Lord Tk, look how tall you've gotten!!" She placed her hands on his cheeks, "And you're taking after your brother I see."

Takeru blushed and smiled, "And you're as beautiful as ever Mimi."

She grinned, "Thank you Tk," she batted her eyelashes playfully, "but what else did you expect."

Takeru smiled broadly, "So have you found my brother yet?" The moment the words "my brother" left his lips he realized it was a mistake. Mimi's bubbly aura did a complete one eighty; her delicate hands had clenched into dangerous fists, her eyes darkened so profoundly he was surprised she didn't slap him for mentioning it, and the air around her seemed to crackle with her fury. "Umm...I take it he hasn't found you yet."

"If he's even looking!" she snapped. "Honestly! It's not like I've been hiding! I've looked for him everywhere and I can't find that idiot!"

"Well, you're not the only one looking for him." Takeru stated, rolling his eyes.

Mimi looked intrigued, "Really?"

"Yea, we've been trying to locate him and Daisuke all night, but it's like they've vanished. And we need Yamato to give the order for when we," he dropped his voice to an almost inaudible whisper, "free Taichi and attack Ken."

Mimi nodded, realizing the seriousness of the situation. She motioned for him to follow her to the back, where they would be further away from listening ears. When they were a safe distance away from the partiers she turned all business, "So what's the plan?"

Takeru glanced around before speaking, "When the..." he stopped, unwilling to bring himself to say 'torture' or 'beatings', so he simply jerked his head toward the line that had already stretched across half the ballroom, "began, almost everyone's attention became fixated on Taichi, which actually works in our favor perfectly. With everyone engrossed in --"

"Ken's foul sense of humor." Mimi spat.

Takeru nodded briskly in agreement, "It would be a perfect opportunity to signal the others and set the mission in motion."

Mimi nodded, "So has the signal been passed yet?"

"Yes. Catherine and Michael sent the signal to one of our younger members, Koji, who passed it on to Koushiro."

"And has Koji returned to his post?"

"Yes, so if anything goes wrong he'll be able to warn them and get them out before the guards arrive."

"Ingenious."

Takeru laughed, "You expeced anything less?"

Mimi smiled, "No. Speaking of Koushiro, how is our resident evil genius?"

"Fine, he told me he wished he could partake in this grandeur, but he was needed elsewhere."

"So...in other words he didn't want to get all dressed up."

Takeru laughed. "Probably."

Mimi sighed happily, "It's good to be home."

Takeru nodded, "Now, let's find Yamato and Daisuke, free Taichi, and get out of here."

"You said it."

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Sora was clutching her stomach in pain as another fit of laughter overtook her.

"You don't believe me do you!" The only answer Daisuke received was another bellow of laughter. "I'm dead serious!" By now her laughter had gotten so infectious he found himself laughing too, despite the fact he was being truthful.

"Oh come off it!" Sora managed to say between giggles. "You can't expect me to believe that!"

"It's true!"

Sora straighten herself before leaning across the table, her face was trying to remain serious but failing miserably. "You expect me to believe that the worst thing you've ever done to any member of your family was to your best friend, and you locked him in a closet for two hours and when you let him out you blamed it on the goblins infesting this castle, he not only _believed _it but fears goblins to this day?"

"I was just a kid." Daisuke said defensively.

They both burst out laughing again.

The duo had been playing twenty questions for the last hour or so, but they were enjoying themselves so much twenty questions led to fifty, which led to seventy, which led to whatever number they reached after losing count.

"Okay umm...what's your most embarrassing moment?"

Sora thought long and hard about this one before remembering a vivid event that left her cheeks rosy to this day. "Let's see...I was ten years old and my father bought me this beautiful chestnut mare for my birthday. I was so excited that I was finally gifted with my own horse that I ran outside as soon as my etiquette lessons (she made a face at that horrible memory) were over. Because of this, I was still wearing a dress and heels and the whole "princess attire", but I didn't care. So I raced outside and went to the stables and brought her out and began fastening the saddle on. When I went outside I realized that all the knights were still training, but they didn't tell me to leave or anything and I was eager to prove that I could ride just as well as any of them. So I climbed on my horse and we started at an easy trot and when I was sure all eyes were on me we went at a full gallop. But..." she felt herself blush, "I hadn't checked the saddle to make sure it was securely tied, and the saddle ended up slipping beneath the horse's stomach. I still held on, luckily, and managed to get her to slow down to where I could jump off, but I was so shocked I hadn't realized my dress fell over my face and...well...all the knights and soldiers were laughing, although many of them came to assist me." She rolled her eyes, "I haven't worn a dress to go riding since."

Daisuke was struggling to keep a straight face, "That's...ehem, that's awful." He bit his lower lip to hide his smile, but Sora saw through it.

"You can laugh, it's sort of a joke around the castle now, I don't care. It _was_ pretty funny." she giggled.

Daisuke grinned and chuckled, "Okay, your turn."

"Umm...what's your favorite color?" Daisuke gave her a look. "It's a good question!" Sora defended.

Daisuke's grin broadened, "I don't have one."

"You don't have a favorite color?"

"Nope."

"How could you _not_ have a favorite color?"

"I don't know...I just...don't?"

"You must have one! What color attracts you the most?"

"I don't know!" he was laughing at the comical situation.

"Well, let's say you walk into a store and you wanted to buy a certain pair of...umm...gloves! They all are exactly the same except for their color, which color would you choose?"

"Well, it would just _have_ to match my shoes, and if I could find a matching handbag --"

Sora started laughing, "Oh come on Daisuke, just answer the question."

"Haha, I don't know Sora, whatever color I felt like getting at the time."

Sora crossed her arms over her chest, "So what would be your favorite color now? What color are you most attracted to now?"

"Right now?"

"Yes, right now."

Daisuke stared at her face before gazing deeply into her eyes, his favorite color at the time immediately came to him, "Red."

Sora smiled, "What made you pick red?"

"It's the color of your eyes."

They both began to blush at that comment, which left a comfortable silence between them.

In the background the line of people had finally shortened, they had already payed their riches and were now told to wait until the moment during which the fun would begin. With the dance floor cleared the musicians began to play their happy music again and Daisuke rose to his feet, "Sora...would you...um...like to dance?"

Sora looked at his outstretched hand and couldn't help but feel puzzled. Daisuke was obviously very comfortable talking to complete strangers and bringing out the best in them (she figured living in a large family had influenced this greatly). His personality made him easy to get along with and she couldn't imagine anyone disliking such a vibrant, witty, handsome young man like him, and yet, now all that confidence had evaporated and he looked nervous! She smiled, "My, my, Daisuke, you never gave me the impression that you were shy."

He blushed and rolled his eyes, "Give me a break, it's not like I do this sort of thing often."

Sora giggled before accepting his hand. The duo walked onto the dance floor hand in hand before turning to face each other. Numerous other couples had also gathered to dance, some were as young as eight or nine and were probably forced onto the dance floor by parents who wanted to "awww" in their direction, others were around the age of Sora and looked pleased but nervous at the same time (an expression she must be mirroring), and finally there were those that were much older but still claimed to have a "hop" in their step. A small crowd of onlookers were positioning themselves around the dance floor, mostly consisting of hopefuls that hadn't been asked yet, or the elderly that couldn't move two steps without throwing their back out and swooning about young love.

Sora smiled, happily ignoring all of the stares she was receiving. She didn't care! Let them watch her! Let them report her to her mother! While she was with Daisuke she was determined to enjoy herself and not worry about disapproving glares.

"Are you alright Sora?"

Sora blinked a few times as she was brought out of her thoughts, "What? Oh! Oh yes, I'm fine, just...thinking." She glanced at the Dias where her fiance was sitting. He hadn't noticed her yet...but she knew he would eventually.

The different musicians began to play their melodies, each had a different tone and sound but they fit together perfectly and produced a harmonious sound that caused everyone to listen, if only for a moment.

"Daisuke, just to warn you, I...I'm not the best dancer."

He laughed, "Don't worry, just go with the music!"

By now several of the couples already began circling the middle of the ballroom, spinning and gliding gracefully. Sora watched, enviously, why couldn't she possess grace like that!?!?!

She was brought out of her jealous ranting by Daisuke's laughter. "Sora, we're going to have to move a bit closer," She blushed tremendously as she felt Daisuke wrap an arm around her waist and pull her towards him. She shyly tucked a strand of her auburn hair behind her ear before placing her hand on his shoulder. Her heart quickened its pace. She had never danced with anyone her age before, sure she'd been asked at every party she'd ever attended, but most of them merely wanted to show off to their friends that they got the heiress of a prosperous kingdom (who happened to have looks that could have any man drooling) to dance with them.

A trophy, in other words.

Sora was by no means a trophy, dressed to perfection but without a mind of its own. The very thought made her gag. She could be, however, a treasure. The major difference between these two is that the man that finally managed to win her heart, through all trials and tribulations (most of which were probably presented by the proud young woman herself), would be the luckiest man in the world, and should act as such. Instead of flaunting her like a trophy she deserved to be treated with respect and dignity, the same way someone that worked towards something they desperately wanted would proudly brag about what it took to be awarded such a valuable gem.

Sora smiled as she turned her attention back to her new friend. With the music reaching a faster pace now that all the couples had gathered Sora and Daisuke joined the hundreds of others in the sophisticated dancing.

"You've gotten awfully quiet. What's wrong?" Daisuke asked.

Sora cocked her head slightly, "Nothing's wrong." He gave her a skeptical look and Sora rolled her eyes, "I'm just worried about Ken. That's all."

"Well if _that's all_."

Sora rolled her eyes again, "I'm worried that something will happen to you if he sees me."

Daisuke smiled and squeezed her hand, "Thank you Sora...that really means a lot." Sora found herself blushing again, and she was sure it was _not_ because of the spinning or the several drinks she's already indulged. "But although I appreciate you caring and all, I'll be fine. My friends and I have outsmarted the Prince on numerous occasions, one more shouldn't prove too difficult." He paused and started thinking, "Well...there was that one time we lost...but everything worked out fine!"

Sora gave him a look, "Thanks for the reassurance."

He laughed, "Any time."

Hearing his laugh, Sora felt a wave of security pass over her. She was probably just being paranoid.

However...nothing could prepare her for what was about to happen...

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Yamato sighed dramatically. At this rate he'd never find her!

He ran a hand through his shoulder length blonde hair as he recalled all his failed attempts at finding the brown-eyed beauty; wandering around, looking at every face and studying them to find out if they were his girl or not, this tactic was an obvious failure. His second approach to this dilemma was to get someplace high and get a bird's eye view of the room and try to locate her that way, but the balconies above were too high to see anyone properly and the Prince's Dias was out of the question, making this idea failure number two. His third and final idea had been to shout her name until she heard him, but this would draw attention to himself and put the mission at risk if the Prince recognized him, making this, you guessed it, failure attempt number three.

He bitterly recalled a number of girls that looked remarkably like her from the back, he had run up to them, ridiculously, only to discover Mimi being none of them. He could've kicked himself as the memory of the last girl he'd seen popped into his head; When that younger girl had bumped into him and he dropped his wine glass he caught sight of a beautiful girl with cinnamon hair over her shoulder. Blindly he raced towards her, paying the crowd no mind and consequently being called several colorful names, but when he reached her his disappointment couldn't have been greater.

He was very fortunate in one sense, however; none of the girls he presumed to be Mimi called the guards on him for stalking. Of course that had been the only stroke of luck he'd had all evening.

He sighed again as he tried to think of every possible place she could be found; The refreshment table, the dance floor, the grand table with the Takenouchi heiress, or the very back of the room. All places he'd checked at least five times.

"Maybe I should start looking for everyone else...I'm sure they're all wondering what's happened to me." He nodded when this thought crossed his mind. It seemed like the most logical he'd had all evening so he might as well roll with it.

Rising to his feet, he silently navigated his way through the poorer regions where the majority of the people were drunk and loudly singing with their friends or giggling uncontrollably as he walked by, their cheeks rosy and their steps fumbled_. And they wonder why they're never invited back_. he smirked at this revelation.

As he approached the more sophisticated area of the ballroom the smell of alcohol thinned and he found himself drinking in deep breaths to clear his senses of the toxic smells of the foul drink. He had never been much of a drinker. He'd help himself to a glass or two at parties, and at home he'd have one every now and then, but he got drunk far too easily, a factor his friends enjoyed taking advantage of, and he would often find himself waking sober in the most awkward positions imaginable. Finally he decided to cut himself off to save himself the embarrassment.

By now Yamato had wandered up to the dance floor where he had a clear view of all the nobility and aristocrats in their fine dresses and most esteemed armored suits. He scowled at them with all their riches, they had all the money in the world but chose to only spend it on themselves when there were people outside that were starving and in danger of losing what meager homes they had. It sickened him greatly; the cruelness of the world.

He turned away, afraid that if he lingered a moment more on the topic he would end up jumping some noble. Instead, he turned his sights on the Prince. The Prince, surrounded by piles of money bags, was watching the dancing couples with the most heated expression Yamato had ever seen on his usual stoic features. This fact puzzled him_. What crawled up his frilly thousand-dollar pants_? He followed the Prince's gaze and found himself staring at the most beautiful girl he'd seen all night (since he hadn't actually _seen_ Mimi yet). Recognition hit him instantly; she was the Takenouchi Princess! He chuckled, some lucky dog actually managed to get that stubborn girl to dance with him, and before the Prince's eyes too! Wow, either that girl is a serious rebel, or the guy she's with was born under a lucky star. And Ken doesn't seem too happy about it.

Chuckling with satisfaction, Yamato turned away without getting a proper look at her partner. He wanted to make sure Taichi was alright then continue his quest to locate Mimi and Takeru.

He stepped cautiously passed the guards, praying that none would recognize him, but these soldiers seemed far too bored to notice anything. They all stood, weapons discarded on the floor or leaning against the walls, slumped against the hard stone walls either half-asleep and muttering or staring out at the crowd with their eyes glazed over, as if he were watching them but not really seeing them. Yamato figured they assumed no one was dumb enough to infiltrate the castle with this amount of security, and the greatest threat to the kingdom was safely in chains a few yards away.

_Perfect_. Yamato thought with a smirk. This was what the thieves had hoped for when they planned the rescue mission. With the guards in a state of false security taking over the room would be a simple task...for the most part. There were the few, the most elite members, that stood beside the royal families and could spot trouble a mile away, but seeing how there were only four of them positioned in the entire ballroom he decided they could be overpowered without much difficulty. Basically this operation was proving to be a piece of cake, but he was sure Ken had some sinister plan tucked under his sleeve in case of such an invasion, after all, Ken was smart and knew that with Taichi in his grasp there was bound to be a rebellion...

And that was exactly what was happening beneath his nose at this very moment.

He glanced up at the ceiling, knowing that just above his head more than half of his friends were hauling Ken's valuables out of the windows and piling them into a couple stolen carriages. Meanwhile, a few stories below them another team was breaking into the jail cells to free all the falsely accused criminals. Courtesy of Taichi, they now had knowledge of a secret entrance that would easily provide an escape route for those unjustly charged with treason or condemned to death.

Yamato smirked. With Ken stripped of his gold and his prisoners he knew Ken would be out for their blood. He would be embarrassed in front of all his guests, his pride thrashed, but the thieves were willing to do just about anything for their friend and leader...Taichi, who was ready and willing to sacrifice himself on a daily basis to help the rest of them. For many of the thieves (mostly the younger ones) he was a role model, a brother, a hero...he and Hikari had done so much for all of them and asked for nothing in return. If anything the two of them should be worshiped rather than feared, for their selflessness, kindness, hopefulness, and, above all, their courage.

Yamato rolled his eyes. Taichi could be an annoying headache when he wanted to be, but Yamato would risk his life for him any day, they _were _best friends regardless of popular belief.

Smiling slightly he finally managed to reach his desired destination. He was several feet away from where his friend was being held, which, unfortunately, was located right beside Ken's throne. Yamato's eyes narrowed with confusion when he noted there were no guards next to him, but then he realized why; Taichi's hands were in shackles which were bolted to the left arm of Ken's throne, there was just enough slack in the chains to give Taichi a few grateful steps away from the Prince but it was short enough to keep him in hearing range for Ken's threats and whispered plans of what he would do to each member of his "gang of demons".

Yamato growled lowly before slowly creeping behind the huge chair that was positioned on a couple steps to give it the extra sense of power. Quietly he managed to get right behind the throne where he hissed an almost audible "pssst!"

Taichi didn't respond at first and it was then that Yamato inspected the state in which his friend was in; he was obviously exhausted and the effects on the drug were making his body shake uncontrollably, but he seemed to be ignoring all these factors as he spared Ken a few insults and jests as well. Yamato also figured he must be starving, he looked much thinner and...shorter?? Yamato stared at his back, Taichi really looked much shorter than he had last time he saw him. He stared at him before coming to the realization that his knees were probably about to buckle without any support and was probably causing the illusion that he'd shrunk.

"Pssst!!" Yamato tried again, but still received no answer. He glared at his back, he was positive Taichi had heard him! He tired again only this time he noticed something. Taichi had moved his foot casually backwards and tapped it once. Yamato found the hidden message at once; he couldn't talk or move his hands so Yamato would ask a question and one tap would mean yes, and two would mean no. The two of them used to use this form of communication, only they'd use different means by which to say "yes" or "no"; claps, snaps, coughs. Anything that would go virtually unnoticed by...surrounding people that could cause them harm.

Ken stirred in his throne, and Yamato decided not to waste any more time. He feverishly began to run through all the questions he wanted answered, sorting between the ones that needed to be asked now, and the ones that could wait for when they returned home. Coming to a conclusion he immediately asked the question that was troubling everyone, "Are you alright?"

Two taps.

Well, no surprise there.

"Do you have any serious injuries?"

Two taps.

Yamato almost sighed with relief.

""Tai...did you know you were going to be caught before the battle even began?!?"

One tap.

"Taichi!" Yamato hissed, "And you still went with it!?!"

One tap.

"You didn't have to answer that one!" Yamato narrowed his eyes, he could practically see Taichi's smirk behind his hood.

"I presume you have a plan of escape then?"

One tap.

Yamato rolled his eyes. "Why didn't you tell anyone?!"

Taichi didn't respond and Yamato realized that this statement wasn't a yes or no question.

Sighing, he realized he still needed to find Takeru and Mimi. "Look Tai, we'll get you out of this. Catherine's already passed the signal. You just need to hang on for a bit longer."

Two taps.

"What?!?"

Taichi chanced a glance over his should to see Yamato's face. The light illuminated the lower half of his face and it revealed (to Yamato's great confusion and annoyance) he was wearing that cheeky smirk of his. Yamato glared at him as he whipped his head back to its original position. He was about to demand what he meant by "_no_", when, to his shock, Ken's hand had flown from the armrest to fasten securely around Taichi's neck. Taichi stiffened but otherwise made no movement to suggest this action caused him fear or pain, even when Ken tightened his grip.

Yamato was tempted to jump out from his hiding place and tackle the Prince to the ground, but luckily had enough self-control to keep himself from doing so. Slowly, reluctantly, he began to back away from his best friend before disappearing into the crowd.

_Hang on Taichi..._

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Ken was furious!

That ungrateful, whoring _tramp_!!!

His fiance, _**his**__**fiance**_ was dancing with some, some...third class...commoner!!!

"That spiteful, infuriating little wench!!" He hissed under his breath.

"Having girl problems _your highness_?"

"Keep quiet Taichi." he snapped.

Taichi smirked, "So...who's the _un_lucky girl?" He craned his neck to get a good look at the young woman Ken was currently glaring at. "Wow, how'd a babe like her get stuck with a bastard like you?"

Ken's hand flew from his chair as he grasped his prisioner by the collar of his shirt. "Laugh all you want boy, we both know that it'll be me that has the last laugh when you're hanging from the gallows."

Taichi laughed, "Don't be so sure, Ken, we both know I have a nasty talent for surprises."

Ken smirked, "Not tonight Taichi." Ken shifted in his seat to peer around the high back of his throne, just in time to wittness a blond haired young man blend into the crowd. "I'm expecting your friends to pull something. I've been watching them all evening and I know they're up to something."

"Ah, so you've stumbled upon my great escape plan. Impressive." Taichi smirked.

Ken smirked as well, "Your friends don't scare me Taichi, and neither do you."

Taichi turned his shadowed eyes on Ken and laughed, "Maybe you should rethink that statement Ken. I'm sure by the end of this evening you won't be able to sleep soundly ever again."

Ken grinned, "I look forward to whatever your friends try to pull off. Who knows, it might actually be worth my time." He released Taichi's shirt with an unnecessary shove backwards.

The mortal enemies were silent for a moment, each concentrating on one thing or another. Ken's eyes had travelled back to his fiance and his insides began bubbling with hatred once again. She was smiling and laughing with the _fool_ she had been dancing, and, doubtlessly, been spending the entire night with. Ken vowed to make this sorry excuse for a human being pay for even touching _his_ fiance. Did he care for the princess? Hell no!! But, this ball was to honor their future wedding, so it's not like this street scum could blame ignorance for coming near_ his_ _property_.

He scowled as he watched them, they turned around and Ken got his first glimpse of the young man she was with, and felt a wave of complete shock roll over him. Ken _knew_ him! He glanced at his captive, then back at the man on the floor, then back to Taichi. The likeness was uncanny between them...they could've been brothers! He shook his head, that was a ludicrious thought, Taichi's only sibling was that revolting little girl; Hikari. But still...

He fixated his gaze on him. _It might be wise to keep an eye on this one..._

"You there!" he bellowed to a guard stationed slightly apart from him.

The guard, literally, jumped to attention before racing towards his lord and master. "Yes Sire?"

Ken roghly grabbed his head and turned it so the guard was facing the dance floor. "Do you see the man my fiance is currently with?" The guard nodded weakly. "I want you to keep an exceedingly close eye on him without him noticing. I have a feeling that boy is up to no good. Do you understand?" The guard nodded briskly, his neck muscles feeling the strain from being twisted so much. "Good. Get out of my sight!" Ken shouted, shoving him away.

"Woooow, and here I thought _I _had a temper."

Ken's calmness evaporated like water droplets on a scorching street. He turned back to Taichi, brought back his fist, and slammed it into the younger boy's face, knocking him backwards. Taichi was silent for a moment before the shock of the punch subsided. Anger began coarsing through his veins as he realized the drugs were taking effect and he couldn't lift himself off the ground!

"I grow sick of your constant sarcastic comments." Ken hissed before rising to his feet. "Ichijouji citizens!!" he paused while everyone turned to look at him, Ken cast one last smirk in the direction of his most hated enemy before loudly proclaiming, "Start lining up! The fun is just about the being!"

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

"Takuya! Careful with that!! Get someone to help you lift it!!"

"I can do it Koushiro!" The stubborn boy replied, although the strain in his voice was obvious.

"Geez, Takuya you dope!" Rika hissed as she raced over to catch the other end of the solid gold clock before it crashed to the ground. She grunted with the amount of effort it took to hold it above the ground. "Ryo! Give us a hand!"

Ryo, who had been examining a number of jewels to determine the immensely valuable from the cheap imitations, dropped the diamond he had currently been gazing at with the upmost precision and rushed to her aid. "Takuya, do you always have to make things harder for yourself?"

Takuya glared at him but chose not to respond.

"Guys! Keep it down!" Koushiro hissed. "We're alone at the moment, but any noise could bring thousands of guards here and then the entire plan would be ruined!"

The trio looked remotely guilty.

"Alright. Now how were you planning on getting that thing out of here?" Koushiro asked. He was assigned to keep them in check and to remind them the stake of the mission, but Taichi wanted this to be their first real test to see if they were mature enough to lead sub missions of their own. In Koushio's opinion, though, most of them needed a few more years of training. There were exceptions, however; Zoe was proving to be much more level headed than he presumed and she followed orders without question and completed them with absolute precision. Kouichi was also proving his worth by suggesting that they form a relay line of two people in the hallway outside the room, so that they could hold off the guards and warn the others the moment danger approached. Koushiro had been impressed, he himself had never thought of a tactic like that before, but he was sure it would be useful in the future. Iori, unsurprisingly, was also fantastic; although he normally just took orders, tonight he had taken charge and told each thief to examine the items they had more expertise in. Koushiro hadn't expected his young apprentice to step up to the plate like he had, and he couldn't help but feel proud of his assistant.

But, as in every class with students, there were the rising stars...and the class clowns.

Koushiro rubbed his temples. Takuya was his greatest disappointment of the evening. Takuya had been such a great addition to the team since they accepted him into the thieves, he had shown skills that proved he had previous experience in thievery, and although he still had a lot to learn he was ready and willing to listen to any advise from the older members. But during this mission it was as if all that ambitious potential just...vanished. Koushiro figured several factors were playing into this; he was probably nervous, this being his first _real_ mission and all, he was still devestated about the loss of Taichi (as were many of them), and, above all, he was desperate to prove himself. And in his desperation he began doing some risky and downright foolish actions that could put all of their safety in jeopardy. Rika, also one of the better of the younger thieves, seemed to be losing her cool in light of the situation. It wasn't that she was doing anything dangerous like Takuya, but she kept raising her voice to a level that would surely cause alarm if it lasted too long. She, doubtless, was just as nervous as Takuya, she just hid it better.

"Alright, we're almost done here." Koushiro stated as he glanced around the nearly empty treasure vault, all of it safely lowered to the ground and piled into the camoflauged stolen carriages. They had used a pulley system, an invention of Koushiro's, that contained different sized baskets for the smaller items and flat boards that were suspended by thick wires for the heavier items. Everything had gone smoothly so far without any accidental damage done to the valuables and Koushiro smiled with relief. Now all they had to do was wait for the signal that the other team had returned.

Earlier on Koushiro had sent Takato, Kouichi, and Zoe to free the prisioners from the dungeons, just as planned. They used the pulley systems to get to the ground and sneak into the castle undetected by means of the secret passage way. When they were all released they were to return to this window and pass the signal that they could leave, or, in some cases, join the others inside to help rescue Taichi.

Iori was currently standing at the window, keeping his eyes peeled for a flash of light.

"Anything yet, Iori?"

"Not yet." the smaller boy replied.

Koushiro nodded, he was patient. With satisfaction he removed a letter from his tunic and drew a knife from his shoe. Flipping the blade in his hand, he thrust it through the wall, pinning the letter to the wall. He smirked as he reread the short message scrawled on the surface:

_**Cheers**_

_**to you Ken.**_

_**Let this be a reminder **_

_**of what happens to the idiots who **_

_**mess with our friends:**_

_**They will pay.**_

_**Thieves.**_

Looking at it, he figured it got the point across.

"So Koushiro, what are we supposed to do now?"

"Nothing."

"What!"

Koushiro rolled his eyes as he elaborated. "We can't do anything yet Takuya. We have to wait for Takato and Zoe to come back."

"But --"

"Taichi's orders." Koushiro snapped. Okay, so he only had the patience to wait, he had none when it came to annoying teenagers.

His reply shut Takuya up almost instantly. _No one_ argued with Taichi's orders, and no one in the room dared to enrage Koushiro futher.

"Koushiro, I think that's Takato!" Iori's outburst interrupted the awkward silence that followed Koushiro's simple but effective statement.

Koushiro, snapped awake from his irritated stupor, rushed to the window and leaned over. There, in the dim light of the moon and stars the signal was visable; a flash of the moonlight reflected off a flat metal surface, three flashes...four...five. It was definately Takato now that Koushiro got a good look at his sillohette. He glanced behind the younger boy and, after straining his vision capabilities, was able to catch sight of a petrified forest about fifty yards away from the walls of the castle in the almost complete darkness. He knew, hidden within those dead trees, were two carriages that were, even as he watched, being loaded with innocent civilains that had been freed. He silently hoped Taichi was with them, but he highly doubted it.

He scowled, Ken was far too imperious to even consider sacrificing an opportunity to show his dominance over their country. He was, doubtlessly, plotting something to do with Taichi on this important night where guests from all across the country were gathered in one place. Koushiro was sure he would use Taichi to somehow show off his power to his subjects, to give an example of exactly what would happen to those that opposed him.

"Koushiro?"

Snapping out of his dark thoughts, Koushiro turned to look at the four gathered behind him. It was now or never. He gave them all a rare adventurious smile before removing one of his socks from his foot. The younger four gave him confused looks, but slowly followed suit, wondering briefly if this was some strange joke.

"Watch me, and do what I do." Koushiro instructed. He carefully raised himself out of the window and stood on the ledge, gripping the sock in his hand. He quickly slung one side over the wire for the pulleys before grasping the two ends and jumping off. He kept his hand firmly latched on the fabric as he sped towards the ground, the night air rushing passed his face and whipping his red hair out of his piercing, intelligent eyes. When he felt his feet touch solid ground he replaced his sock on his foot and motioned for the next person to follow.

He almost laughed when he saw all four heads turn to look at each other, he was sure shock was evident on their faces even if he couldn't see them properly. After a quick argument over who would go next another figure soon ame speeding towards him. He wasn't at all surprised to find out that it was Takuya, soon followed by Rika, then Iori, and finally Ryo.

With the five of them safely out of the tower Koushiro removed another knife from his boot and stuck it in his mouth as he began scaling it, hand over hand, until he got to a point where he could cut it and drop to the ground without injury, but also without the Prince being able to use it for future evil. Hanging by only one hand, he removed the knife from his teeth and began sawing at the ropes with efficency until all four ropes were cut and he was able to drop back down to earth.

Replacing his knife to its place he turned towards his team and nodded. Then, the five raced into the petrified forest to wait for the events inside to unfold.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

"Hikari?"

The young woman didn't answer.

"Hikari?"

Still no response.

"Come on Kari, everything will be okay."

"I'll kill him." she whispered. Her eyes were dark, her hands clenched, and her face a few shades paler. "Ken won't get away with this!"

Michael and Catherine were concerned, to say the least. They had never heard Hikari so angry before. Usually she was Miss Sunshine Happiness, the Light of the Thieves, the most merciful, and the girl with enough kindness and love to cover the globe...hearing such malice in her voice was unheard of, and it frightened them.

But it just went to show, there was a lot about Hikari they didn't know...or _want_ to know. Ken was obviously hacking into old, unhealed wounds that were better left alone. All the thieves realized Hikari was blaming herself for Taichi's capture; she had been going around for days reassuring everyone that they'd get him back, that Taichi was tough, that the blame fell to no one, while on the inside she was accusing herself of being the cause of the attack's downfall. Hikari was so wonderful, she cared more about everyone else than she did about herself. She didn't want anyone to feel guilty, but she would allow her own guilt to slowly eat away at her until she broke.

Catherine could see all this within her soft brown eyes, that she was slowly eating herself up and all that saddness was being channeled into rage. Catherine knew of the close relationship between Hikari and Taichi, but she had never seen the extent of how much love was between the two than she saw now.

At the moment Hikari, Catherine, and Michael were watching as a stout little man, that looked remarkably like a toad, was pummeling Taichi with his hammy fists, screaming incoherently about stealing his family fortune and leaving them with next to nothing. Catherine had never seen this man before, but judging by his elegant clothes she knew he was lying, and even on the off chance that he was telling the truth Catherine was certain this toad deserved whatever happened to him.

Taichi had done remarkably well for a while; his hands were tied behind him but he still managed to dodge and evade the clumsy man's attempts to harm him, but Ken motioned for a couple large people from the crowd to prevent this from happening. The public cheered when they grabbed his shoulders from behind and threw him to the ground where the toad-like man proceeded in kicking him.

Ken was watching with a sick smile, his previous anger at watching his finace dance with a dirty peasent quenched by the joy at watching his most hated enemy abused and humiliated publicly. But something was missing...

He stared at the cloaked figure before the solution appeared in his head; He wasn't able to see his face! Taichi wasn't very good at hiding his emotions, never had been, and to fully enjoy watching the extent of his punishment he needed to watch the pain, anger, hatred, and embarassment cross over the younger boy's face...he wanted to see that annoying fire in his eyes finally die.

Ken smirked as he motioned for the soldier beside him over. He whispered something in his ear before the man nodded and began marching towards the ring.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

"And ummm...OH! I got this one when I was sword fighting with a friend of mine. We got a little too competitve and he sliced my arm open, of course I got him right back by cutting his leg, but my mother was furious! She threatened to lock me in my room while she melted my sword and had it made into sewing needles." Sora rolled her eyes as she lowered her sleeve to conceal the long white scar that ran from her elbow to her wrist.

"Wow, that's awful."

"No, not really, it didn't hurt that bad."

"No, not that," Daisuke, for the first time that evening looked sad, "That your parents don't accept you for who you are."

Sora was quiet for a moment...for years she had told herself the same thing, but hearing it from someone else made it all the more real. "I love my parents."

Daisuke nodded, "I can tell." He was staring into her eyes again, and Sora was under the impression that he could see straight into her soul, he smiled as though reading her mind, "You know, they say a person's eyes are the window to their soul."

Sora smiled, "So what do you see when you look in mine?" She leaned across the table somewhat and rested her chin in her hands.

"Life." he replied, smiling. Sora nodded for him to elaborate. "I see fire, you're determined and stubborn. There's light, for happiness and purity. You also have a mischevious side and you love to laugh. And..." he paused, "you long for something you can't have..."

Sora's mouth had hit the table. "You can see all that just by looking in my eyes?"

"Yep." he beamed.

"Wow! That's incredible! You must have some gypsie blood somewhere in your family." Daisuke's eyes widened for a moment but he didn't persue the matter. Sora smiled, "So, you've told me that you have a sister, how many other siblings do you --"

A loud chorus of cheering errupted from the front of the ballroom.

"What's going on?" Daisuke asked.

"Oh, Ken's probably just torturing the Prince of Thieves." Sora replied as though talking about the weather. "Now what was I --"

"And you don't find anything wrong about that?" Daisuke asked, his voice was still calm, but Sora noticed his eyes had darkened somewhat.

Sora was taken aback by the sudden disappearance of the warmth in his eyes. She hesitated before answering, "Well...I don't approve of it, but it's not like he doesn't deserve it."

Daisuke's eyes flashed, but still his voice remained calm, "So you think a fellow human being deserves to be tortured for the amusement of Ken?"

"That's not what I said." Sora replied just as calmly. "I despise Ken's methods, but the Prince of Thieves has been terrorizing people for years. And although I regret that Ken has to be the one responsible for his capture, _someone_ has to stop him."

Daisuke stared at her for a long moment before a sad smile appeared on his face. "I had hoped that maybe..." he shook his head. "It doesn't matter. You have your opinions, and I have mine." His usual smile returned to his face and rose to his feet. He gently took her hands in his and brought her to her feet as well. "Sora, thank you."

Sora looked confused, "For what?"

"For making this one of the greatest nights of my life." He gave her hands a slight squeeze, and Sora found herself blushing again.

"Daisuke, I should be thanking you. I didn't think I'd ever find another friend other than Mimi." she squeezed his hands back.

This time he blushed, "Sora, as much as I...I mean...I _really_ don't want to but...I have to leave." Sora felt her heart stop for an agonizing moment. "I really, _really_ wish I didn't have to..."

Sora nodded, "I understand...you have to get back before your sister finds you, right?"

Daisuke smiled, "Yes. But, I can tell we'll meet again."

Sora cocked her head slightly, "You can?"

He flashed her another smile, "Just a feeling." Then, before Sora even realized what had happened, he gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before giving her hands another light squeeze and releasing them. He slowly started walking towards the exit, but before he reached it he turned around and gave her a quick wave, which Sora returned, her heart fluttering slightly. When he disappeared out of sight Sora almost smacked herself. She had completely forgotten about Mimi and helping her find Yamato!!

"Damnit!" she yelled before racing towards the crowd to locate her friend.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

"HIKARI!!! Look how beautiful you've gotten!! Oh my goodness!!!" Mimi squealed as she embraced the younger girl. "I can't believe it! No wait, that's a lie, I knew you'd turn drop dead gorgeous, I just can't believe I missed seeing you grow into it! Isn't she beautiful Takeru!"

"Very." Takeru replied without thinking. The realization of what he said made his cheeks turn bright red, and Hikari's were a petal pink.

"Well of course _you_ would think so Tk." Mimi winked in his direction.

Hikari regained her composure and directed Mimi's attention to the two that accompanied Hikari. "Meems, this is Catherine and Michael."

"It iz a pleasure I am sure" Catherine held out her hand to shake Mimi's, but Mimi laughed and gave her a hug as well.

"Don't worry," Mimi said brightly, "You'll get used to me in no time." She giggled as she gave Michael a hug as well.

"Mimi hugs everyone." Takeru said laughing.

Mimi smiled, "I'm just a hugging type of girl." Then she turned back to Catherine and gasped, "Your shoes are fantastic!"

Catherine looked confused before directing her eyes to the floor, "Oh! Zank you!"

"Are they designer?"

"Zey are, in fact. I had them custom made in France."

"France? I had my mask made there!"

"And it is absolutely beautiful! Who made it?"

Hikari and Takeru laughed, "Well, I think they'll get along famously."

Takeru and Mimi joined the trio at the stage a few minutes earlier than expected. Now they were all relying on Miyako to find Daisuke and Yamato, but the odds were against her. Nobody had seen Yamato since they arrived, and Daisuke seemed to vanish!

"We might have to start without them." Michael had stated.

Hikari had agreed, but still felt wrong about it. Yamato was second in command, if she took over as Third in command without his consent it felt like mutany...which was why she was determined to wait until they had no other option.

"Look! I think I see Miyako!" Michael said. And sure enough, a lavander head could be seen bobbing towards them. Everyone was prepared to welcome her back with smilies, but when they saw the look of terror on her face all smiles vanished.

"You guys have to follow me, NOW!" She grabbed Hikari's wrist and proceeded to lead the way towards the front of the crowd.

"Miyako, what's wrong?" Hikari asked as she felt Takeru grab her hand in order to stay together.

"Ken's going to do something to Taichi, I saw him tell a guard something."

Hikari glanced at Takeru, "Miyako, he's been hurting Taichi all night..."

"I know! But after he spoke to the guard...he looked _happy_."

"Happy?"

"How happy?" Takeru asked.

Miyako turned to them, a grave look on her face, "Like...Daisuke on a sugar rush happy."

Hikari and Takeru's eyes widened slightly, each recalling vivid memories of when Daisuke had discovered a variety of candy hidden in one of the rooms. "He's planning something horrible...like killing."

Hikari, Takeru, and all the thieves behind them quickened their pace after hearing her explanation. When they reached the front however, they froze.

"We're too late." Mimi whispered, her hands over her mouth.

The solider had him hoisted off the ground by his neck, Taichi hung limply in his hand.

"No..." Hikari whispered, her hand over her mouth. "He's not...he...no..." Hikari started shaking her head, tears forming in her eyes. "NO!!" Takeru grabbed her before she revealed their location to Ken. "Hikari stop! Do you want to give the rest of us away?" Although tears had formed in his eyes too. Hikari was shaking in his hold.

Ken laughed manically before jumping off his throne and walking towards the limp figure. "Let's see the face of this vermin...one last time." He gripped the sides of the hood and pulled it from its host's head.

Gasps echoed around the hall, but, for once, it wasn't the shock of seeing how young he was...it was something far more confusing.

"_**WHAT?!?!**_" Ken roared. The guard, confused, dropped the boy from his grasp and watched, awed, as he stood up on his shaky feet. Ken watched him, anger turning his pale face red. He grabbed him by the hair and pulled his face towards his, "_You're_ not the Prince of Thieves."

The boy smirked, "Took you long enough." Then he spat in Ken's face.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTT

me: HAHA!! THAT'S IT!!! Man, I've suddenly gained an addiction to cliff hangers, lol. MUWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!! ehem. Anywayz. READ AND REVIEW!!!! PLLLLLLLLZ REVIEW!!! I recently checked on the stats of this story, and I had 103 hits...but only 8 reviews...hmmmm...so that's 95 people that haven't reviewed, that's alot!! A review doesn't have to be long! Just a quick "Good Job" will work for me . PLLLLLZ review!!!

For those of you that have, I LUV YOU GUYS SOOOOOOOOOO MUCH!!! (hugs all eight of you)

Well, until next time!! LATERZ!!!!

**CS**


	6. Black, White, and RED all over

me: HOORAY ANOTHER CHAPTER!!!! Wow! And this is like, record timing too!! Cool! Well, I know I left you guys in suspense, so I'm not gonna talk today!!

I just wanna thank my awesome reviewers!! I LUV YOU GUYS!!! OH! And I'm gonna reply to those of you that don't have an official screen name!! YAY!!!

**AngelSachiya**

**lil-lilac86**

**reader -** THANX SOOOOO MUCH!!! I'm glad you're liking my fic . YOU ROCK!!

**M M Forever**

**jerseygrl90**

**TerrorizingTaiora11**

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**Crazy With Happiness**

**mc hammers? -** Muwahahaha! I guess you're just gonna have to find out in this chapter aren't ya . THANX FOR THE REVIEW!!! YOU ROCK!!!

**Litanya**

**BandGeek95 -** You finished the Harry Potter book in eight hours!! WOW!! And I thought "I" was obsessed, lol. I finished it in two days after I got it at midnight the night it came out! IT WAS AWESOME!!! haha, I luv your reviews!! THANX SOOO MUCH!!! YOU ROCK MY SOX!!!...and I'm not wearing sox!!!

**JJ Chow -** Nope, No Daiora . YAY!! I love tricking people!! lol. THANX SOOOOO MUCH FOR THE REVIEW!!! YOU ROCK!!!

**MooneyBurlesqueZiggyHepburn **(awesome name!!)

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

_**last time: **__Hey Guys, Yamato here. Well, you can imagine my frustration. I'm in Ken's ball, a place I really don't want to be, and I'm trying to find Mimi, but I haven't been able to find her and it's driving me insane!! So while everyone else is enjoying themselves I'm looking for my girlfriend that has seemingly disappeared off the face of the earth!! Well...okay, so not everyone is enjoying themselves, Taichi hasn't been...or has he? Turns out the person everyone thought was Taichi, really isn't Taichi, and now Ken's throwing a fit that he escaped. Damn...where is Taichi!?!_

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Ken, with a savage glint in his eye, ran a hand across his face and flicked the wetness off his hand. He chuckled evilly, "Did you find that heroic boy?" The boy being questioned said nothing as he glared fiercely at the Prince he loathed. "Well, with all the trouble you've cost me, I have every right to execute you, now don't I?" He waited for the spark of fear that always appeared in his victim's eyes when he threatened them...but it never ignited in this one's. He chuckled again, impressed by this boy's courage. "Kid, I admire your valor, but here, within my domain, hero's are always crushed." Still, the boy remained stubbornly silent. "So, here comes the question that will either set you free, or condemn you to your death; Where is the Prince of Thieves?"

To the Prince's extreme annoyance the boy smirked. "Do you really believe that after all I went through I'm just going to tell you?"

Ken's mouth formed a thin line, "I'm only giving you this one chance. If you blow it you will be hanged."

The boy stared at him for a moment, seeming to debate his options, but then he met Ken's eyes with a fierce determination. "This is what I have to say to you Ken," he paused for a moment for dramatic effect, "Go. To. Hell. I didn't go too fast for you did I?"

Ken's eyes narrowed in controlled fury. "Alright, if that is your choice." Ken made a move to replace him on the floor, but at the last second he changed his mind and brought his hostage back towards him, only this time he unsheathed his sword and held it against his throat. "Come out Taichi, or your pawn here will be killed!" roared the furious Prince.

The thieves were watching in an awe-struck silence, the boy's identity had been revealed to them when Ken placed the knife at his neck, and, to their horror, the face was all too familiar.

"Daisuke!" Miyako whispered, fear evident in her voice.

"But -- I don't -- how could --?" Hikari rambled as she looked at Daisuke, hoping to find the answers to her incomplete questions written across his face...no such luck, however.

"Wait, if that's Daisuke...then where's Taichi?" Takeru questioned beside her.

Ken was wondering the same thing as he stared at all the people before him, all had an expression of absolute shock or terror plastered on their faces. "SHOW YOURSELF TAICHI!! OR ARE YOU TOO COWARDLY TO REVEAL WHERE YOU'VE BEEN HIDING?!?!"

Silence.

No one dared to speak while their Prince was raging, especially when he had a dangerous weapon clasped in his hand.

The silence seemed to last hours. Everyone was looking around trying to locate the Prince of Thieves, but it was a futile effort since not many knew his true identity. The guards in the room had either raced to alert others of the escaped criminal, or ran to escape the wrath of their Prince who would probably want to persecute all of them for not noticing the difference between the actual prisoner and the impostor.

Hikari noticed all of the odd looks she and her friends were recieving as the nobles searched for her brother, these were people that had nothing better to do than attend grand balls and extravagant parties, they were accustomed to seeing the same people at every party, and, Hikari soon realized, the thieves' garments were far too nice to belong to commoners. It was no wonder they were attracting suspicion!

Sensing that they would be found out soon if they remained together, Hikari quickly ordered her friends to go to their posts, she knew Ken was now looking for them, determined to figure out how Taichi escaped, and he didn't care how many innocents had to die in order to find them. "Guys, it's time to put phase two into action. I'm sure Yamato already knows this, but if he doesn't Mimi you to take his place, Takeru will show you to your station."

The Thieves all nodded and swiftly vanished into the crowd. When they were safely out of sight Hikari turned her attention back to Daisuke, so many questions were buzzing in her head that she was justified when comparing it to a hive of angry hornets_. Where is Taichi? How the hell did he escape? How was Daisuke able to take his place with all these people watching? Where is Yamato? Did Koushiro complete the mission with the younger members? _

"Hikari?"

Hikari jumped and prepared to raise her fist, but then she realized the person addressing her used her name. Turning around, she outwardly sighed when she realized who it was. "Jyou! Geez! Don't sneak up on me like that!" She shoved his shoulder slightly.

"I'm sorry." Jyou said smiling.

Hikari sighed, "Where have you been all night? Catherine told me she ran into you and you told her you were checking on something."

"I went to the dungeons just in case Kouichi, Zoe, and Takato hadn't made it out yet. The last thing we'd want is for those three to get caught on top of everything else that's happening."

"Good thinking. So is everything on the outside in order?"

Jyou smirked, "Kari, _Koushiro_ is in charge."

Hikari managed a small smile. "Right. Stupid question."

Jyou chuckled a little before a deep frown furrowed his brows. "Hikari, what's happened? Isn't that --"

"Yes."

"But how --"

"I don't know. Jyou, can you tell if he has any serious injuries?"

Jyou stared at the battered figure of their friend, eyes narrowed. "None that I can see from here. Although I am worried about that drug Ken mentioned earlier. If it's the drug I've presumed it to be, then he would need to take a very precise amount; too much could cause him to become addicted or make him fall into a coma-like sleep, and not enough could have unwanted side effects that might prove just as deadly."

"Alright. When we go after the Prince, you get Daiske out of here."

Jyou nodded and was about to add something to their conversation when a blood curdling noise caused them to freeze. Hikari and Jyou whipped their heads towards the front of the room as a pained yelp echoed around the almost silent ballroom.

"You should know by now Taichi, I'm not the most patient individual. If you keep me waiting too long, my hand might just..._slip_. So come out from where ever you've been hiding and face me!!"

And that's when it happened.

The room was suddenly filled with the foreign sound as it bounced off the walls and filled the otherwise silent dance hall. Someone had the _gall_ to _laugh_ while Ken was about to _kill_ someone!! The silent onlookers began circling their immediate area, terrified that the person laughing was standing directly behind them. It was so silent that the laughing filled the air with an overpowering sense of mockery that caused Ken's eyes to darken to the most extreme level.

"Ahh, but Ken, I haven't been hiding! In fact, I've waltzed directly before you on several occasions this evening, literally." he chuckled, "You were just so sure of yourself that you didn't trust your better judgment!"

Gasps echoed around the room as the occupants quickly located the source of the laughter. Standing casually on the balcony directly above them, leaning slightly over the edge to get a clear view of what Ken was doing, was the infamous, bloodthirsty Prince of Thieves.

The crowd took his appearance in a rather comical way, in Taichi's perspective. A few of the elderly ladies in the room let out melodramatic gasps before falling backwards into the open arms of those standing behind them. Several of the younger women let out high-pitched screams worthy of horror movies, and a few of the courageous (and foolish) young men drew their swords with an almost musical "shing". But most, as was expected, _stood_. Just stood. Stock still, slack-jawed, widened eyes, the whole picturesque "struck dumb" look.

Taichi had to hold back another bellow of laughter as he watched this scene. Honestly! You'd think aristocrats would have more dignity...

Of course, as he scanned the crowd he also caught sight of many figures whom he recognized; his friends were positioned fan-like amongst the rest of the crowd, a strategy that, Taichi recalled, Yamato was very fond of. As he examined their positions he unconsciously noted in the back of his mind the type of plan Yamato and Koushiro had formed in his absence, it was something simple, but effective; They would break away from the crowd to hold off the guards while he took on Ken, keeping the fight fair between the rivaling princes.

Nodding with satisfaction he realized it would work parallel with his own, but in order for their plans to work they would both have to wait until Daisuke was out of harms way.

Smirking, he decided to wait until Ken got over his shock before going to meet him, after all, there wouldn't be any fun in making a total fool out of him unless he was prepared.

Ken was staring up at his nemesis with the utmost loathing. "So, you decided to stick around even after I discovered your little plot, how very noble."

"Wow Ken, coming from you that means a lot." Taichi replied, rich with sarcasm.

Ken smirked, "Laugh all you want Taichi. However, I'll be the one getting the last laugh! Are you forgetting your friend here is at my mercy!" Ken's eyes had brightened with a malicious glint that was only rivaled by his insane smile.

_Wow that face is one that_ not even _a mother could love._ "How could I forget about him Ken? After all, your majesty _is_ hiding behind him. It's pathetic really, hiding behind a kid," he sighed and shook his head, "I expected more from a Prince, but, alas, life is just full of disappointments."

Ken's eyes twitched, but he didn't release Daisuke, if anything he dug the knife deeper into his skin, allowing small beads of blood to bloom upon the blade. "That trick won't work on me, Taichi."

"Trick?" Taichi blinked in surprise and replaced his smirk with complete innocence. "Why Ken, I would _never_ trick you!" He straightened his back from its slouched position over the balcony before jumping onto the thin ledge of marble. Balancing cat-like he smirked again, "Well, alright, I would. But not in a completely obvious manner like the one you just accused me of."

Ken chuckled, "Well forgive me for that false accusation, I'll be sure to scratch that one off your lengthy record."

Taichi bowed mockingly, "Normally I would thank someone for such kindness, but I won't in your case. You're just too much of a bastard for me to waste a perfectly good gracious comment on." Taichi straightened and walked over to one of the walls that the balcony was built into. On each side of every balcony were long black banners with blue trimmings that proudly showed off the Ichijouji family crest; half of a circle that curved slightly to the left (a/n: it's the Crest of Kindness), it was red, so it stood out against the banner like bloodstained black velvet. Taichi studied it for a moment before unsheathing his sword and plowing it through the thick fabric.

Gasps echoed around the room at this obvious sign of rebellion, but the gasps soon turned to screams as the Prince of Thieves jumped from the balcony, clutching the hilt of his blade, before sliding down the length of the banner.

Ken watched as he landed on his feet, the banner was split in two and billowed ominously as Taichi turned to face him.

"Show off." Daisuke mumbled, trying to ignore the stinging pain from the knife at his throat. Ken seemed to have learned his lesson at the previous battle, because he didn't loosen his grip on Daisuke or the the knife...but Daisuke would just need him to drop his guard for a millisecond for him to pull off an escape. He fidgeted slightly, testing how firm Ken's grip was, sadly, though, his grip was like an iron clasp.

"Let the boy go Ken." Taichi said calmly, although the fierceness behind his eyes gave away his calm exterior.

Ken, however, wasn't intimidated. "What's he mean to you Taichi?"

"Nothing." Taichi replied, his eyes never leaving those of Ken, so he missed the hurt look that crossed Daisuke's face for the most fleeting of moments. Daisuke wasn't going to lie, that one little word stung worse than any wound he'd received all night. He shook his head sternly, Taichi was just bluffing to get him safely out of this situation. It took him a few moments to convince himself of this thought, though.

"Nothing? Oh really?" Ken's smirk broadened. "Well, since he obviously has no sentimental value to you, I suppose you wouldn't mind me doing this." He dug the knife deeply into the exposed flesh on Daisuke's neck. Daisuke gave a pained yelp as the knife became half-way embedded into his skin and blood began escaping from the wound more freely.

Taichi watched the action impassively, his eyes only drifting to Daisuke before settling back on Ken's icy glare. He shrugged, "Why would I care? I've never met this boy before."

Ken chuckled, "So he was completely willing to impersonate _you_, a perfect stranger?"

"I payed him handsomely for his troubles."

"I don't believe you Taichi, this_ kid_," he spat the last word out as if it burned his tongue, "is one of your precious thieves! I know it!"

Taichi smirked, "So you think you have me all figured out?"

Ken laughed, "I don't _think_, Taichi, I _know_ I've figured you out."

"Well then, don't let me keep you from your dramatic tale. Please amuse us Ken and fill the room with your incorrect theories concerning my friends and I."

Ken narrowed his eyes, but he continued with his story regardless. "You fell for my trap Taichi, admit it.

At one point or another you overheard some of my men discussing the security measures being taken for my return to Ichijouji. Well, I told them to! I ordered them to let the information leak into the city where I knew you would hear it. I knew you would plan a raid to try and catch me off guard, but in reality Taichi, it was _I_ that caught _you_ completely unprepared.

I didn't include the extra regiment of archers positioned upon my rooftops, so that when you tried to turn my ambush against me I would not only retain this vital advantage point in our battle, but also have a vast quantity of your thieves out of commission as well.

Then it was just a matter of separating you from your friends. With minimal protection for your friends it was easy to target one and use her against you. With you distracted it was relatively simple to apprehend you, and although you managed to escape my clutches, that battle is still a deep gash in your pride. I can see the shame written on your face from losing that battle. It's always been your weakness Taichi, you care too much! If you ever hope to become a great leader you have to be void of all emotions, that way they can never be used against you! Only a fool uses his heart in battle!"

"I swear your ego is more than enough to fill this entire castle." Taichi stated, rolling his eyes. Ken blinked, this wasn't the response he had imagined. "Did you even consider the possibility that I discovered your brilliant plan and countered it with one of my own?" Ken's face fell, and it was all Taichi needed to see in order to get his answer. "And that's _your_ greatest weakness Ken. I know I've reminded you of this fault numerous times, but repetition seems like the only way to get it through your thick skull. You underestimate your opponents! You think so highly of yourself and your brilliance, and yet a lowly commoner like myself has been able to get the best of you for years!"

Ken scowled. "I don't believe it! How could you possibly learn that the entire encounter was a trap!"

Taichi grinned before plopping onto Ken's throne. He swung his legs over one of the arms and began studying his blade. "You know, this is the most uncomfortable chair I've ever had the displeasure to sit in."

The ballroom was silent. Everyone was in awe over the fact that someone had outsmarted their Prince, but their shock was increased tenfold when the Prince of Thieves sat in Ken's throne. Now THAT was an act of high treason. Anyone that was foolish enough to sit upon the Ichijouji throne (and insult it nonetheless!) would be immediately put to death. But...this wasn't exactly a shocker, it wasn't a secret the Prince of Thieves had been reserved for the gallows the moment he began humiliating the Prince, but to see him rebel in this manner was shocking...and to some...inspiring!

Taichi shifted in the chair, oblivious to the fact that everyone was gawking at him. "Alright, so you want to know how I figured out it was a trap? Well it doesn't take a genius to figure out a plan that was _this_ badly organized." he looked up from his sword to catch the satisfying glare he was receiving from Ken. "The first time I heard it, I had a feeling something wasn't quite right. Two Ichijouji soldiers were discussing a matter of extreme importance in a _pub_ of all places," Taichi rolled his eyes at this, "But I threw into consideration that they might be drunk, so I went ahead and told my team about this new piece of information and we began planning for it, but I was still wary of it. It turns out I had every reason to be worried. Civilians were discussing _battle plans_ on the streets for the next few days. You might as well have placed big flashing arrows above their heads that screamed, "Trap!". Honestly! I was almost insulted at the simplicity of your plan!." Taichi rolled his eyes again before returning them to the sword in his hand, where he began running his thumb along the edge.

Ken was flushed with rage by now and he made a mental note to whip every single soldier senseless for being so idiotic. Ken closed his eyes and chuckled, "Impressive, I'll admit."

"Not really, a three year old could've seen through that...that...I can't even call it a plan it was so daunting!" Taichi ceased his thumbs movement and rubbed his temples, shaking his head. "I expected a little more of a challenge."

"You want a challenge?"

Taichi looked up just in time to see what was happening. He threw his torso against the other arm of the chair just as the knife Ken had been holding pierced through the wood where Taichi's head had been seconds before. Taichi quickly regained his bearings and realized that the arm of the throne was digging painfully into his back. He winced as he jumped off the throne, ripping the knife from the splintered wood. Without his knife, Ken had nothing to keep Daisuke restrained, so, without much effort since Ken had apparently forgotten about him, Daisuke threw his head back and allowed the back of it to slam into Ken's nose.

Ken yelped in shock as his hands flew to his nose where blood was gushing.

"Nice one Daisuke!"

Daisuke spun around and smiled with relief. "Thanks Tai."

"Alright, go get yourself checked out, I saw Jyou over there."

Daisuke's eyes widened, "But I want to fight!"

"I want you to as well." Taichi stated, a note of disappointment in his voice. "But with that drug still in your system, and with the risk of serious injuries, I'm afraid I can't let you."

Daisuke pouted, but reluctantly saw the logic behind his mentor's words. "Okay, but if anything happens --"

"You'll be the first to know." Taichi assured.

Daisuke nodded weakly before racing into the crowd that, in the last few minutes, had gone into a state of panic. People were running about with no thought on their mind other than escaping; ladies threw up their expensive shawls and purses into the air or onto the floor, ditched their heels, and were screaming in terror as they vacated the building. Men that decided to show up in armor waddled out of the ballroom, while the more sensible of the aristocratic men began assisting the ladies into the cool night air.

The only ones that seemed unperturbed by the upcoming battle between rivaling Princes, was Prince Ichijouji's most elite guards and Taichi's band of thieves; Catherine, Mimi, Yamato, Hikari, Takeru, and Michael. By now Jyou and Miyako had ushered a reluctant Daisuke out of the ballroom with the confusing crowds, but...there was one more that remained that no one seemed to notice...

Sora was hiding -- no, wait. Sora didn't _hide_. Hiding was a cowardly and completely un-Sora-ish act that was reserved for the weak!! She was merely _spying_ on the events that were taking place at that moment with the Prince of Thieves and Ken. She didn't want to be seen, she was weaponless (unless you count her shoes, which if aimed correctly could put an eye out), and...to be blunt, she had no idea which side she would fight for! But she wasn't about to leave either! In fact, there were still about one hundred people that decided to stay and watch the show, although they preferred to take the dangerous fist class seats. But Sora knew better, she had seen these two young men fight and she'd be damned if she didn't give them credit for their extraordinary skill and talent. The last thing she would want would be to find herself on the wrong end of one of those swords, completely defenseless. She was reckless, but she was smart enough to realize the chances of her winning a match like this was zero to negative one million.

Sora's eyes drifted towards Ken and the Prince of Thieves. Ken was clutching his nose as blood began filling his palm and drizzling onto the floor. "Damnit!" he hissed as he moved his hand from his face, inspecting the thin streams of blood that stained his pale porcelain skin. For a moment he was fascinated by the sight of it, it wasn't often he got to see his own blood...He stared at the blood drops as they slithered down his wrist before curling to run down the other side of his arm. Unsurprisingly, the foreign sight of his own blood had only ever been caused by the younger boy standing before him. No one else was brave enough, or foolish enough, to harm him. He calmly directed his attention from his hand and turned it to the boy he had previously been thinking about.

He was still standing on his dais, sword drawn, but his expression was anything but worrisome. _Cocky, arrogant bastard! _Ken seethed as he watched Taichi gaze around the nearly empty room with a curious expression on his face.

Taichi hadn't seen the ballroom since it was remodeled about a year ago, and now, with the lack of people, he could take in the new surroundings and appreciate the new decor. The floor hadn't changed, still the same boring black and white tile King Ichijouji was so fond of (he chanced a fleeting glance at the King as he thought this. But, unsurprisingly, the King was hacking his lungs out once again and could only give him an icy glare, the same one that Ken inherited). All the furniture had been upgraded, he noted, now it seemed luxurious as well as sophisticated, but if anyone decided to sit in one of these seemingly harmless chairs they would soon discover them to be the most stiffly uncomfortable pieces of craftsmanship ever created by the hands of men. Chuckling at this thought, his eyes wandered up to the ceiling; the color was black, big surprise there. He noticed the same tattered tapestries were still hanging around various points in the ballroom, each showing a vivid description of a battle fought to gain Ichijouji its power. One of them, he smiled with satisfaction, was still scorched beyond recognition, although he was sure the King made up some valiant story to go with the intensely burned material.

He furrowed his brows in confusion. There wasn't really any change to the room; the furniture, a few extra windows, and the more elegant qualities of the balconies were new, but that was all. He was beginning to feel the seeds of disappointment begin to flower when he realized something that was significantly different. It was...the feeling of the room. Ichijouji castle was the definition of doom and gloom, but Taichi had never experienced such a feeling of hopelessness, as though all the happiness within him was being sucked dry. There was no life in this room. No hope, light, happiness...it was like an empty shell that allowed people to inhabit it's depressing stone walls in order to try to fill the void within, and even then it received no true happiness. He shivered. He didn't like being back in this place. Too many horrible memories lingered in these walls...memories he wished he could forget.

Ken noticed a change in Taichi's expression the instant it occurred. Oh! And what was this? A flicker of fear passing through those amber orbs he had grown to hate? He smirked as recognition hit him like a lightning bolt. "Contemplating old times Taichi?"

Taichi snapped out of his stupor immediately, his eyes had narrowed and darkened in the same instant.

Ken chuckled, he knew he was riling Taichi by bringing up the past, but he planned to use that to his advantage. "You know, I can remember bits and pieces of a particularly fond one concerning you in this very room. Now what was it..."

"Shut up."

Ken smiled broadly, "Getting upset are you, _boy_?" he was preparing another insulting comment, when a look of remembrance crossed his face. "Ah! Now I remember. Isn't this where you had your final conversation with that old fool before we killed him?"

Taichi looked murderous by this point. His amber eyes were almost black with hatred and rage, besides his eyes, no other emotion showed on his face, but those eyes were enough to have anyone scared stiff, the devil himself couldn't compare with the fury those eyes held. "Don't you _**dare**_ bring any of my friends into this."

Ken smirked as he removed his sword from the belt around his hip, "I say good riddance to that crazy old man, the world would be a much better place without people like him and --"

Ken was cut off as Taichi closed the distance between them with inhuman speed. Ken barely had enough time to raise his own sword to block the uppercut from slicing his head in half. Their swords were crossed as both tried to overpower the other, Ken grunted slightly from the strain in his arms, but his smirk didn't waver as he finished his sentence, "and people like _you_."

Taichi's eyes flashed as he ducked. Ken, thrown off balance by the sudden loss of his opponent stumbled forward and left himself open for an attack. Taichi, from his position on the floor, smirked as he dug his blade into Ken's exposed side. Ken cried out from the shock of the pain, but didn't miss his own opportunity to hack at the younger boy. He found his balance, but Taichi was quick enough to miss what Ken intended to be a fatal strike and only received a deep cut on his shoulder before jumping out of the way.

Taichi jumped to his feet, the pain in his shoulder forgotten in his boiling rage. Ken spun around, a hand covering the deep gash but the state of his clothing proved that it wasn't preventing the massive amount of blood loss, but Ken seemed pretty oblivious to the wound as he glared at his opponent.

"You'll regret that." he spat.

"The only thing I regret is not doing it sooner." Taichi hissed.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Mimi had watched the exchange between Taichi and Ken with extreme interest. These two had a hatred for one another that not even the fiery depths of hell could fathom, and yet they were conversing with one another as though they were old colleagues. _Strange_. she thought, but then she was reminded that this _was_ Taichi.

She smiled slightly, but then she noted how Taichi's expression had changed dramatically.

Everyone else in the room seemed to sense the change as well; the few elite guards that remained to protect Ken immediately drew their weapons, holding them tightly in their hands as the thought of battle passed through their sharp minds. Mimi understood that the moment Taichi attacked Ken those guards would race forward to protect their master with everything they had, and Taichi would be outnumbered.

She silently prayed that the others had realized this too. They were too far away to communicate with one another and she couldn't abandon her station with the threat of an attack looming so closely.

After a quick debate with her opposing sides she came to the conclusion that if the elite soldiers rushed to Ken, she would rush to stop the one closest to her. If the others hadn't thought of this already they would eagerly follow her lead and Taichi would be left to deal with Ken. She smiled at her logic, but the smile faded when she realized she didn't have anyone to discuss her brilliance with...well, she _could_ talk to one of the many young adults surrounding her, but that would be unwise. She was somewhat shocked at the fact that so many people stayed behind when they've had numerous chances to escape. Didn't they realize they were putting themselves as well as Mimi and her friends in danger by sticking around?!?!

She sighed, she supposed they didn't care. Most of them were of noble class, and therefore had no idea how dangerous a situation like this was. A few of them even dragged one of the small tables and sat around it for a more comfortable viewing experience. Mimi almost shook with rage at this spectacle, her friends were in mortal danger and these spoiled brats thought it was some sort of dinner show!! If she had the option she would march over there and --

The sound of steel on steel shook her from her thoughts. Without a second thought she wretched two of her knives from their hiding places among the folds of her dress. Holding one in each hand she shouted at the crowd to move out of her way as she raced towards the elite guard that had already lept into action to defend his lord.

The soldier ran behind Taichi, sword in hand, prepared to plow his sword into the Prince of Thieves's back, but Mimi charged in front of him, crossed her knives into an X and caught the blade at the crossing point. The guard gave a start as she began pushing him backwards, her strength overpowering him. The guard, with his reputation on the line, quickly pulled his sword back and tried to land a slash at her side, but Mimi stopped his sword with one of her knives and, after placing the other one between her teeth, grabbed his wrist and kicked him in the stomach with enough force to send him sprawling across the floor. She calmly removed the dagger from her mouth and spun her weapons in her hand with the skills of an expert.

The man staggered to his feet, his face exposing just how shocked he was that a girl could fight with such ferocity, but the next moment a cruel smile found its way upon his lips.

Mimi stared at him, waiting for him to say something or try to hurt her or...something! Why else would he be looking at her like that?...Unless! She spun around, but she was a little too late, another of the elite guards had grabbed her around the waist, pinning her hands to her sides.

"Let me go you bastard!" she screeched.

"Hm hm hm. How's a pretty thing like you know how to wield knives like that?"

Mimi could've gagged. His mouth was right beside her ear and his fingers were tracing patterns on her stomach.

"Come on girly, drop those nice weapons of yours. I might be able to convince the Prince to pardon your traitorous actions...for a price."

Mimi's eyes flashed with fury, "Like hell I would you filthy, disgusting --"

"Hey!"

Whatever other words she had been planning to say stopped abruptly as a third voice joined their conversation.

"Let her go."

The guard responsible for her capture didn't turn around, but he did look over his shoulder to answer the punk kid that had the gall to tell _him _what to do. "Oh yea? And what are gonna do if I don't?"

"_Let. Her. Go_. Or else."

"Or else what?" the guard asked, his voice full of amusement. What was this kid going to do to an experienced guard like him?

"I'll kill you."

The soldier would be lying if he stated that the tone of this boy's voice didn't unnerve him, but he'd be damned if he let this kid know that. "Yea right! Tell you what kid, if you leave now I won't inform the Prince of your foolish acti --"

Mimi looked over her shoulder at the man, only to find that his eyes were wide and a choking, wheezing sound was rattling his foul breath. Not waiting for an invitation, Mimi heaved his arms off her slim waist and shoved his bulky frame out of her sight. He hit the floor with a sickening thump as his blood began to form a puddle beneath him, but Mimi didn't even spare him a glance. Her attention was completely focused on only one person, and he was standing right in front of her.

"Yamato?"

Yamato smiled, "Seriously Mimi, do you even have to ask?"

Mimi smiled before lunging herself at him, her arms wrapping around his neck as all of her emotions caught up with her. She was so overjoyed to finally be back in his arms that she felt warm tears begin to cascade down her soft skin, however she was smiling and laughing at the same time. She was back! It had finally hit her. She was back with Yamato, and Taichi, and Hikari, and Takeru! And as her eyes finally met the cool blue of her lover's, and as Yamato stared into her lovely honey colored ones she vowed she would never leave them again.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

"Alright, what's you name and what were you accused of?"

The kid he was questioning looked nervous as he fumbled with a loose sting on his trousers. "Um...my name is Junpei...but everyone calls me J.P."

Koushiro nodded as he recorded the boy's name on a clipboard he had brought with him. "Okay, and what did they convict you for Mister J.P?"

"Theft."

Koushiro raised his eyebrows, his interest spiked a bit. "Really?"

"Yes."

"And what were you convicted of stealing?"

"A cake. Me and my friends were starving so I walked into a closed bakery and stole a cake."

Koushiro nodded. "Interesting." he scribbled something on his clipboard before asking one final question, "Do you have any skills J.P?"

"Skills?"

"As in...do you have any special talents that might help us find you a job and a place to stay?"

"Well...I'm pretty good with magic tricks."

Koushiro sighed inwardly, "Magic tricks?"

"Yes."

"But do you have anything that might prove useful for an employer of some sort?"

"Well I can --"

A knocking on the carriage door interrupted J.P's response.

Koushiro ran a hand over his face, he was never going to finish at this rate. "Come in."

Zoe opened the door and popped her head inside the carriage. "Sorry Izzy, but Jyou wants to see you as soon as you're done with this one."

"Alright, thank you Zoe."

She nodded before throwing a quick smile at the fugitives and closing the door.

Koushiro growled in annoyance. "Alright J.P...now, where were we?" he asked himself as he looked over his notes. "Ah yes. You were saying about any skills you possess."

Silence.

Koushiro looked up from his notes and almost screamed with frustration. J.P. was staring at the spot Zoe had been just a moment ago, a faraway look in his eye and a ridiculous blush staining his cheeks. Koushiro impatiently cleared his throat, "J.P?"

"Woooow, she was beautiful."

Koushiro picked up his clipboard and hit himself on the forehead with it. "Why am I always stuck with the idiots!?!" Without another word to J.P, Koushiro opened the carriage door and jumped into the cool evening air, mumbling obscenities into the wind.

"What is it Jyou?" Koushiro asked, trying to mask the impatience in his voice.

Jyou looked up from whatever he had been crouching over and gave Koushiro a small smile. "Are they that bad?"

"You have no idea. I'm about to kill this one kid."

Jyou chuckled before patting the seat beside him. "Koushiro, do you know anything about Narcotics?

Koushiro blinked. "Why?" But as he sat he realized exactly the reason Jyou had asked the question. "Daisuke!?!"

Jyou nodded. "Taichi and Daisuke switched places at one point. Judging by the look of him, I'd say he took Taichi's place for just this one evening."

Koushiro's eyes widened. "All those bruises and all that blood is from one evening!"

"Iz not tha bad." Daisuke slurred, his eyes still shut.

Jyou sighed and wiped his glasses with the hem of his shirt before replacing them upon his nose. "Yes. I can only imagine the type of injuries Taichi must be suffering with. But, we'll discuss what's happened later, I need you to help me figure out the dosage of narcotics he was given."

"They drugged him!" Koushiro exclaimed.

"Yes. So he wouldn't fight back when Ken allowed civilians a chance to beat the hell out of him." Jyou's eyes attained an uncharacteristically dark look at the mention of Ken's cruelness.

Koushiro, however, looked furious. "That bastard! What right does he have to do this sort of thing to a human being!"

"Well, he _is_ the Prince."

Koushiro gripped the sides of his head for a second as he let out another growl. He stayed there for a moment before slowly calming down. "I just...can't believe... that son of a bitch..." Jyou nodded, completely understanding. Koushiro took a deep breath before continuing. "Okay, back to the problem at hand. I don't know much about Narcotics Jyou, I'm not a doctor."

"I know that," Jyou said rolling his eyes, "but I don't know how to determine if this is an overdose or not. If it is Daisuke could be in serious danger. I'll know how to help him," he stated, seeing the look on Koushiro's face, "but if the drug was given at the right amount Daisuke will be fine...he might be a little out of it for a day or so, but that's nothing a little bed rest won't cure."

"Alright, where do I fit into all this?"

"Do you know Daisuke's medical records?"

Koushiro blinked, "Why would I know about his medical record, or anyone's for that matter?"

"Because you seem to know everything." Jyou said as though stating the obvious.

Koushiro remained silent for a moment before replying, "Fair enough. I'll check my log book. I may have written some notes while you did one of your senseless check-ups on the entire team."

"Hey, less talking more getting the book. Daisuke could be put into a coma if you don't hurry!" Jyou rolled his eyes before turning back to the semi-conscious boy.

"J..oe...do you ink I did okay...it wa my irst mission by my...self."

Jyou smiled, "I think you did great Daisuke, but I know the people you really want to hear that from aren't here."

Daisuke nodded slowly before drifting out of consciousness.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Catherine smiled as she lowered her stiletto daggers, extracting the narrow blade from the back of the surprised guard. He made a soft choking noise before collapsing on top of his would-be victim.

"Ow!"

Catherine giggled as she observed the blonde male shove the man off of him, a disgusted look on his face.

"You should..." Catherine struggled with the words for a moment, her brows wrinkled in concentration, before smiling with pride, "watch your back."

Michael chuckled, "Why? When I've obviously got you to do it for me."

Catherine smiled as she offered her friend a hand, which Michael eagerly accepted.

"So...umm...how are you fairing?"

Catherine pointed behind her to a pile of wounded soldiers, "I sup'ose I am doing alright."

Michael tore his widened eyes off the gruesome sight and turned to look at Catherine again. "Wow, remind be never to get on your bad side."

Suddenly the duo spun around, back to back, as several soldiers tried to ambush the unsuspecting couple. Michael spun his sword in his hand before plowing it into the closest of the guards, another guard discovered this to be the perfect time to strike so he charged forward, prepared to knock the head off of the youth, but he was stopped by a swift kick in the stomach. He stumbled, off balance and confused until he saw that the girl that was accompanying his prey was standing before him, her weapons brandishing menacingly.

The guard quickly regained his footing, spinning the sword in his hand to intimidate the young girl. It didn't work.

Catherine raced towards him, her eyes set in a steely look of determination. With one hand she thrust her dagger towards his chest, he raised his sword to defend himself against the blow which gave Catherine all the opportunity she needed. She gave her weapon a quick twirl before slamming the point into his side issuing a cry from the man, but he wasn't about to go down that easily. Keeping his sword in place against his chest, he used his other hand to grab her arm, twisting it until she relinquished her hold on one of her daggers. Smirking with triumph he forced her arm behind her back, but she slammed her heeled shoe onto his foot before spinning around and thrusting her other dagger into his left shoulder. He winced, but slammed his knee into her stomach causing her to gasp and topple backwards.

Clutching her bruised abdomen, she glared at the enemy.

"Hm hm, looks like you're weaponless." he chuckled as he pulled the dagger from his chest, inspecting the blade. "Too bad, you were a worthy opponent." He raised his sword and plummeted it towards Catherine, but it halted just above her stomach. Catherine turned her attention from the frozen face of her attacker and directed it at the sword puncturing through his chest.

Catherine sighed and placed a hand over her racing heart, "Zank you Michael."

Michael smiled as he helped her to her feet, "I guess this makes us even."

She smiled as he tossed her weapons to her. She caught them with ease before the duo rushed back into the action.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTT

"So," Mimi panted as she knocked yet another soldier unconscious, "I take it you've been busy these last couple of days?"

Yamato blocked another strike from the elite soldier he was battling, "I guess you could say that." He jumped out of the way as the soldier drew back his blade and tried to slice off his arm. "We really haven't done anything new," he paused as he ducked from another carefully planned swing, "just planning Taichi's rescue and plotting Ken's demise." He cracked a small smile as he landed a well aimed kick at the side of the man's knees, "The same stuff we've been doing since you left."

Mimi laughed a bit before ducking and pivoting to the side of her current opponent, making a deep gash into his sword-wielding wrist. "Well I'm glad to hear our cause has reached the ears of so many. I can't wait to meet all of the -- hang on a sec, " she glared at the elite that had disarmed one of her hands. In one swift motion she revealed another knife she had been keeping under her belt and threw it into his thigh, just above his knee-cap. He fell to the floor, grasping his knee in obvious discomfort, while Mimi calmly retrieved her weapons. "I can't wait to meet all of the new recruits."

"You'll love some of them, I'm sure you'll get along with Miyako and Zoe, but there are a few who --" he grunted as the hilt of his opponent's bade made contact with his shoulder. The force of the hit was enough to send him spinning to the ground. Not heeding to his throbbing shoulder, he focused all of his weight onto his hands before throwing his legs beneath the soldier's in a windmill motion. "There are a few that are a bit..."

"Arrogant?"

"That's a polite way of putting it."

Mimi laughed again as she blocked another attempt at her throat, "Don't worry about me Matt, I grew up with _you_ didn't I?"

Yamato chanced a glance at her, she had long ago removed her eye mask so he could clearly see the amusement in her eyes. "You're hilarious."

She shoved her opponent to the ground and plowed her heeled foot into his chest, and Yamato inwardly shuddered about the pain that must've caused. She straightened her shoulders and gave a mock bow, "Thank you, thank you, I'll be here all week."

Yamato smirked before knocking his enemy onto the floor, a deep, but not fatal, wound in his side that would keep him from the battlefield for the rest of the night. He spun around and walked over to his girlfriend, a sly smile on his lips. "You better be here longer than that."

Mimi smirked, "Oh? And what would you, Yamato Ishida, do if I disregarded your request?" She batted her eyelashes playfully.

He smirked, and had already prepared a witty reply, but something above him caught his eye. He whipped his head around just in time to see something get thrown over the sides of one of the balconies before crashing on top of the couple. The weight of whatever it was knocked them both off their feet and they crashed on the floor in a tangled mess.

"WHAT THE HELL!" Mimi screeched as she tried to sit up.

Yamato blinked in confusion before realizing that the infuriating device that was keeping them glued to the floor was a thickly roped net. "Shit."

Already they had caught the attention of most of the room and even now guards of all sizes were gathering around them, weapons drawn.

"I'm gonna fricken kill the bastard that did this." Mimi seethed. She was furious with herself for allowing this to happen, but even more so due to the fact that her daggers had slipped out of her hands when the net fell on them, and were now lying beneath the dirty boot of one of the elite soldiers. Yamato had kept his grip on his sword, but it was of little use since he could barely move his arm.

"Damnit," he whispered. "Alright, Meems, can you move at all?"

"That's a stupid question Matt, don't you think if I could we'd already be out of this mess?" she rolled her eyes. Yamato glared at her and Mimi sighed, "Okay, okay, I get it, not helping. But what are we going to do?"

"Well, these guys noticed, we can only hope someone on our side noticed as well."

"Great plan." Mimi rolled her eyes.

"Well do you have a better one!"

Mimi didn't reply.

"Didn't think so."

Mimi blew a strand of her hair out of her eyes, "Alright, but what do we do until someone comes?"

They turned their eyes on each other before glancing around at all of the smiling enemies surrounding them. "Ummm...not die?"

"Brilliant Ishida. Why didn't _I_ think of that."

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Sora was watching all of the battles with extreme interest_. Wow, these guys are good_...

She still had no idea which side she wanted to win; she had every reason to be against the Prince of Thieves, after all the horrible things she'd heard about him, but those could all be rumors...While on the other hand, she _knew_ Ken was a vile and cruel beast, and she hated every thing about the pompous, arrogant bastard. She was torn between sides, and she didn't know what to think anymore.

Sora was entranced by the battles. The followers of the Prince of Thieves had so much skill! They defeated opponent after opponent with seemingly little effort, a few were even talking to one another as they battled.

Her eyes darted from each engagement, greedily taking in the movements of the blades and the movements of the wielders; there was one encounter taking place with, whom she presumed to be the youngest two out of the group, a girl with short brown hair and a boy with messy blonde. These two were the most interesting to watch because they put their whole being into each attack, they had their soul, heart and mind on the battle and she could tell these two were formidable opponents.

There was another battle concerning two different blondes, a remarkably beautiful girl and an equally attractive young man. These two were the least experienced out of the group, she noted, they weren't completely in tune to every movement their body made and therefore would make small mistakes every now and then, but they both had fast reflexes and sharp senses that alerted them when they made these mistakes. But one oddity that Sora noticed was that the girl_ killed_ every opponent that came her way, unlike the rest of the team, and Sora wondered what had triggered this strange lust for Ichijouji blood.

Then there was the battle that Sora had been watching most attentively. There was another blonde male that had a strong resemblance to the youngest boy. He was _very_ good looking, but Sora noticed almost immediately that he was obviously taken by the beautiful girl that was fighting at his side. She had long honey colored hair, and on more occasions than one, she had the odd impression that it was Mimi, but then she shook her head and reminded herself that Mimi didn't know how to fight. These two were so connected with one another that they seemed to know exactly when the other was in danger, almost as if they had a sixth sense of some sort.

And finally there was the_ war_ raging between the two leaders themselves. Some of the moves each of them used was enough to cause Sora's mouth the hit the floor. The Princes were obviously masters at the art of swordsmanship. Each movement was faster than the last and neither seemed out of breath even after the last hour! But the most obvious difference between their battles and the other ones was the fact that these two were striking to kill. Ken and...Taichi she believed Ken had called him were out for each others blood.

"WHAT THE HELL!!"

Sora's thoughts were jostled at the sound of the scream. Her eyes instantly located the source of the cry and she felt her muscles stiffen. A net had been thrown over two of the thieves, and now they were completely defenseless!!

"Oh no." she whispered. She glanced around, hoping that one of their comrades had heard the distress call, but they were all being cut off from their friends as the number of guards seemed to multiply. The youngest ones were attacking furiously, but even with their amazing skill they were still being pushed in the wrong direction. The blonde duo were suffering similar difficulties, and even the Prince of Thieves himself tried to help them, only to be slammed into the floor as Ken's hilt made contact with the side of his skull.

Sora stared at the figures that, only moments before, had been dominating the battlefield, and now, in their haste to help the fallen duo, were now struggling against their opponents and concerning over their comrades.

Sora felt useless. She knew how to wield a sword!! But would she be assisting the enemy if she saved their lives?

The crowd around the duo was growing greater and greater and Sora screwed her eyes in thought. What should she do! If she helped wanted criminals she could be putting more innocent people in danger, not to mention she would have no power when she became queen of this god forsaken place.

_But weren't you planning on disowning that title anyway?_

Sora stopped her racing thoughts as that one little voice broke through the haze of her emotions. The voice spoke the truth. She_ was_ planning on running away. But that didn't give her any excuse to allow wanted criminals to walk free! Even if she wasn't going to rule, she didn't want these people to suffer any more than they already had.

_Haven't you heard the old saying, The enemy of my enemy is my friend?_

Sora slammed her fist into the ground. Of course she'd heard it! She looked back at the battle and felt her heart speed up. These people had definitely acquired the number one spot on Ken's long list of enemies, but they might be her enemies too!

Suddenly the clangs of steel and shouts of the injured were overwhelmed by another yell.

Sora knew it was the girl, there was no mistaking it. She knew she had to make her decision now. She bit her lip in thought. Even if they were her enemies they didn't deserve to die in such an unfair manner. Even if they were guilty of everything else, Sora was sure that they were not guilty of foul play during a battle.

She clenched her fists in determination. Her mind was made up.

She ripped her heels off her feet and raced into the battle field. On her way towards the fallen thieves she snatched a sword from an injured Ichijouji soldier, ignoring the feeble protests from the bleeding man. She inspected the sword, it was, by no means, an extravagant blade, but it would have to do.

She raised the blade across her chest as she approached the group of Ichijouji men, they all had their backs to her, making this the perfect opportunity to take out as many as she could before they realized they had an unwanted opponent. She brought her sword down upon the first three unlucky guards she ran into, cutting deeply into their backs and sides and causing them to cry out in alarm. She quickly silenced their screams by slamming two of their heads together and pressing a pressure point on the final man's neck. But the racket didn't go unnoticed and a group of five turned to her, weapons raised. She slashed one across the chest before kicking him into the one standing behind him, then she revolved her sword until the blade was tucked under her arm as she thrusted it into the man standing behind her. She pivoted on the spot, turning her blade so she could disarm another group of three. She punched another in the jaw before she had a clear path to the thieves.

Keeping her blade drawn she ran towards them.

"Matt, look! There aren't as many guards!" Mimi whispered happily.

"Looks like one of the others noticed we needed help." Yamato agreed.

"Yea, I wonder who it -- SORA!!"

"MIMI!!"

For a moment the two females were completely silent, eyes wide, mouth agape, the picturesque "duh" look. Then, as though some spell was lifted off of the duo, they began bombarding each other with questions.

"Why are you still here!?!"

"Where did you learn to fight like that!?!"

"Where the hell were you all night!?!"

"You're friends with these guys aren't you!?!"

"Did you take out all of those soldiers by yourself!?!?"

"Who is _this_!?!"

"Why didn't you -- wait, what?"

Sora motioned to Yamato, who was staring at the two young women with looks of confusion. "Oh! I completely forgot about you Matt."

Yamato rolled his eyes, "Thanks Meems, love you too."

Mimi giggled. "Sora, this is Yamato, Yamato, this is Sora."

"A pleasure, I'm sure." Yamato said. "I'd introduce myself properly if..." he tugged on the area of net closest to his hand.

"Oh! Sorry, here let me get you two out of there." Sora kneeled down beside them and slipped the tip of her sword beneath one of the rope pieces, she pulled her sword upward and the piece split in two, then she proceede on the others.

"It's a good thing you came when you did." Mimi stated as she felt the ropes loosen sufficently.

Sora glanced up and realized for the first time that Mimi had gotten hurt during all of this; the bruise that she had gotten upon their arrival was showing now that her make-up had been wiped off, her dress was cut in several places and the edges were soaked in blood, unlike Sora she had kept her shoes on and to Sora's astonishment they were still in perfect condition, she was sure there were more visable injuries along her body but Mimi showed no sign that she was in any pain. Sora nodded in reply as she sliced through the final rope and Mimi and Yamato rose to their feet.

"Come on you two, let's get out of here."

"Get out of here? Sora we can't do that!" Mimi said.

"Why not?" Sora demanded.

Mimi could tell Sora was furious, and she had every right to be. Mimi had kept the majority of her life secret and, although she had planned to tell Sora before they left, now Sora knew everything, but she found out in possibly the worst way imaginable. Sora had always been completely honest with her, and Mimi hadn't...

"Look Sora I know you're mad at me, and I don't blame you if you don't trust me right now...but these guys are my friends and I refuse to abandon them again." That said, Mimi retireved her daggers and rushed over to assist Catherine and Michael, who were having some difficulty holding off soldiers.

Yamato watched Mimi's back before turning to Sora, "She didn't tell you about us?"

She narrowed her eyes in her friend's direction. "She did. But she failed to mention you were with the Prince of Thieves."

Yamato sighed and ran a hand through his hair, "Sora, I'm not going to pretend that I know you...but from everything Mimi's told me about you, you sound like a good person." he turned his gaze back on Mimi, who was now fighting against yet another guard. "You've helped us, it's possible that you've even saved our lives, but we're loyal to our friends, just as you are to yours, and we can't abandon them..." He gave her a quick smile before giving her back a light push, "Your bravery won't be forgotten, now you should get out of here, we'll meet up with you later." With that final statement he raced towards his girlfriend, eager to resume the fighting.

Sora watched his back for a moment before narrowing her eyes, _Like hell I will! I've been dragged into this, and I'm not going to leave now!_ She hadn't the faintest idea where this sudden boost of confidence came from, maybe it was the adrenaline...but she knew that these thoughts were right. Steeling her determination, she plundged into the fight. After all, she too had a friend she didn't plan on abandoning.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

"Out of breath already Ken?"

Ken glared at his enemy as he tried to reduce the amount of panting his body was forcing him to use. "Don't get cocky Taichi, you're slowing too."

Taichi shrugged. He would never outwardly admit it, but he _was_ beginning to tire, but his pride was forcing him not to show any symptoms of weakening. Normally he would be prepared to go on much longer than the period of time that the duo had been fighting, but he was still suffering from his stay at Ichijouji castle; fatigue and injuries were beginning to take their toll and he wasn't sure if he would be able to make it out of this one without at least one more serious injury_. Damn, Damn, Damn Taichi think! Use your head! There's a way out of almost any situation, you just have to find it! _

Taichi was thrown out of his furious thinking by Ken making a running swipe at his forearm. Taichi jumped to the side, just enough to dodge the blade, then he slammed the hilt of his sword into Ken's cranium. Ken, his balance already being tested due to his position, toppled to the ground, but not before grabbing Taichi's shoulder and swinging one of his feet behind Taichi's knees, bringing him to the ground with him.

Taichi's head began to spin as the back of his head collided with the hard tiled floor. He furiously blinked away the dizziness, but that was all the opportunity Ken needed. Ken slammed his foot on Taichi's wrist, disabling him from using his sword, then he grasped a handful of his hair and forced his head back as far as it would go. Taichi glared menacingly at him, but in the position he was in he realized that the chances of intimidating the prince were slim to none.

"What is it about your past that gives you nightmares Taichi?" Taichi struggled, but his strength was no match for the evil Prince's in his current condition. "Is it me?" Taichi shut his eyes tightly as he tried to force Ken's voice from his head. "No, that can't be it...Is it the thought that you placed all of your friends in danger?" Taichi clenched his fists in rage. "No, that isn't it..." Ken smirked, "I know! It's those dark nights after a match. The blood of your victims still on your clothes and skin. You killed all those people Taichi, does that fact haunt you the most?"

"Shut up."

"So many innocent lives lost. And it's all _your fault_."

"No it's not! Shut. Up!"

"And not only did you kill countless civilians, but you also insured the deaths of numerous palace staff, maybe not by your own hand, but you did bring about their deaths."

"SHUT UP!"

"I bet it makes you wish you were never born, think of all the lives spent so that your sorry excuse for a soul could live on."

Taichi opened his palms and gripped the stone beneath him, his eyes blazing. "I might Ken. I might wish I was never born every now and then," he suddenly swung his leg around to kick Ken in the side, freeing his arm. Taichi then swung his sword at Ken's other hand, cutting an extremely deep gash into his arm, causing Ken to recoil his hand and allowing Taichi to move his head freely again. Then he jumped into a kneeling position and placed the tip of his sword at Ken's neck, smirking, he said, "but it always helps me sleep at night knowing I'm not nearly as much of a bastard as you are."

Ken glared at him before kicking him sharply in the stomach. The duo quickly jumped to their feet and charged at each other, swords drawn.

Ken's sword clashed against his rivals, then with all the strength he could muster he shoved thier swords downwards then aimed a punch at Taichi's face, but Taichi caught it with his free hand.

Ken's eyes widened slightly at this, but he quickly improvised. He slid his sword up Taichi's until he was able to grasp Taichi's other wrist. Taichi noticed this only a second too late as Ken forced his arm behind his back then grasped his other wrist and spun him around so his back was facing Ken's. Without waiting for Taichi to recover he released Taichi's arm that he had pinned behind him, then he placed his free hand on the elbow of Taichi's other arm.

Taichi saw what was coming before it happened, but it didn't stop the excrutiating pain from overwhelming every one of his senses. Ken, in his cruel twisted version of amusement, shoved his hand forward where Taichi's arm bones met, severing the connection between them with a sickening_ CRACK_!

The sound of a pained yelp escaping from Taichi's mouth was deafening, and it wasn't long before the entire room's attention was focused on them.

Taichi screwed his eyes against the terrible pain, reminding himself that he had endured far worse than a broken arm. He calmed his strained breathing and tried to think about anything but the pain. He placed his hand over his limp arm, scowling, but he quickly noted a miraculous fact that turned his scowl into a relieved smile. Ken had broken his left arm! He was right handed and could still weild his sword! It almost seemed too good to be true, but he wasn't about to forget the serious disadvantage of his other arm being immoble, not that he could. He smirked, he wasn't out of the game yet.

Ken, however, must not have realized this startling factor because at that moment he had left Taichi in his seemingly unconscious state and was now addressing the crowd about his victory over the streetrat.

"And now you see my people! Not even the greatest threat of our time can stand up to me! The Thieves reign of terror is no more!!"

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Yamato froze when these words reached his ears_. What!?!_

His attention was instantly drawn to Ken, who was standing bloody and bruised in front of his throne. A arrogant but tired smile on his face as he began spouting nonsense about how they were beaten and how he reigned superior. Yamato shook his head, Taichi couldn't have been defeated.

He shoved his way back to Mimi and Sora. They had seperated not long ago to make sure Takeru and the other thieves were unhurt and prepared to escape. He was lucky enough to run into Catherine and Michael early on and they were fine, for the most part. Catherine had been raging at one guard in particular that formed a large rip in her favorite dress, Yamato almost pitied the guy. Michael told him they were prepared to leave as soon as they were alerted, the only problem being that Yamato didn't have any idea how to alert all the thieves at once to make their escape. He had been pondering this delima when Ken made his announcement.

"Yamato! Ken said --"

"I know, I heard him."

"It's not true is it?" Yamato's silence was answer enough to the distressed brunette. Mimi grabbed Sora's arm, knowing Yamato would follow. The trio scrambled over the wounded Ichijouji soldiers until they ended up behind Ken's throne. Mimi and Yamato peered over the side of the chair and Sora heard them both urse under their breaths. Curious, Sora looked over the other side of the throne and her hands clenched the wood of the chair. Even from their spot away from him, Sora could immdediately tell his arm was broken by the odd angle at which it was hanging. She then looked up at his face; there was pain, and Sora could only imagine what having your arm broken in such an inhuman manner must have felt like. She studied his face for a moment and suddenly a small smile appeared on his face_. What could he possibly be smiling about_??

He slowly got to his feet, glaring at Ken's back, but Ken was so immersed in his "victory" that he didn't notice. Taichi drew a knife from his belt, flipped it in his hand a couple of times before smirking, "You shouldn't turn your back to an opponent unless they're dead, Ken."

Ken froze before slowly turning around. "How are you still conscious?"

Taichi laughed, "I've had worse injuries, Ken. Do you think a broken arm is enough to stop me." he didn't wait for a reply as he sent the dagger flying out of his hand. Ken braced himself for the impact...but it never came. He opened his eyes and realized that the knife hadn't been aimed at him, but at something hanging above him. Ken raised his head toward the ceiling, and fear swelled in him as he realized the Prince's goal.

A rope above him had been severed, and now the giant chandeller was hanging by a few threads, sure to break at any moment.

Ken backed away, "You fool! You'll crush us both!!"

Taichi shrugged, a smile playing on his lips, "Not scared of your fate, are you Ken? Knowing what awaits you on the other side." he smirked as he drew another dagger, "I know I'm not." Before Ken could cry out for him to stop the knife was already speeding towards the rope that was keeping the chandeller hanging. It was like watching your lifeline about to be cut.

Ken, in his fear tried to run as the diamonds raced towards him, preparing to rip through his flesh, practically beggiing for his blood, but it was no use. In seconds in crashed to the floor, burying the tile with different sized crystals.

Yamato, Mimi, and Sora were all knocked to the ground, the force of the crash causing the throne to fall on top of them, Sora was knocked unconsious as the armrest struck her in the head, but otherwise the trio was fine. The other Thieves were far enough away to not be affected by the crash, but soon the four of them rushed to the scene.

But Taichi was no where to be seen.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

me: OMG I CAN'T BELIEVE I LEFT IT THERE!!! That's possibly the most evil cliff-hanger I've ever done!! MUWAHAHAHAHAHAH!!! Wow! This chapter was really fun to write! I luv action sequences!! Don't worry dudes, I promise to have the next update up soon! I'm gonna try for next week, because school starts on the 27th and I want another chapter posted before I return to hell, lol.

Hoped you guys liked the chapter!! **REVIEW**!!! PL PLZ PLZ PLZ REVIEW!!! haha, Until next time!!! LATERZ!!!

**CS**


	7. The Aftermath

me: HEY EVERYBODY!!! I KNOW I KNOW I KNOW I KNOW!!! I'M SUCH A HORRIBLE PERSON!!! But I have a legitimate excuse!!!

I went on a quest to find the lost underground colony of the marshmallow peeps.

SERIOUSLY!! Well...okay, not really. HAha, yeeeea... I deserve to be set on fire for keeping you guys waiting so long... and live of course, haha. Believe it or not the culprit for me not updating was NOT writer's block!!

Davis: gasp!!

me: I KNOW!! It was school, obviously, but also the exact opposite of writer's block!! I've had so many awesome ideas for this story that I've had trouble picking what to put in the story!! Crazy right!

haha, anwayz this chapter will introduce the more important allies and enemies for this whole story and it's the chapter that really gets things interesting! YaY INTERESTSING STUFF!!! haha.

**MY AWESOME REVIEWERS!!! YOU GUYS RULE!!!!**

**nomigid **- Sorry for killing you!! heehee, I'm SOOOO glad you like it!! YOU ROCK!!

**bw1080 - **Thanx for the muse!! Haha! I think she was REALLy helpful And dude, no worries, I won't EVER abandon my stories! Even if it takes FOREVER to update!! Promise!! haha, THANX SOOO MUCH FOR THE REVIEW!

**FlarieHanami**

**PhantomJ**

**Cray With Happiness**

**JJ Chow **- YAY!! Taichi's NOT dead!! haha. THANX SOOO MUCH FOR THE REVIEW!!! YOU ROCK!!! WHOOHOO!!!

**Bla8**

**lil-lilac86**

**MooneyBurlesqueZiggyHepburn**

**Litanya**

**Cursive Obsession**

**AngelSachiya**

**l'ange-de-fue**

**TerrorizingTaiora11**

**M M Forever**

(If I forgot to reply to any of you, HAHA SUX FOR YOU!! haha, no I'm just kidding! If I forgot to reply to you I apologize!)

Obviously I don't own Digimon, otherwise the last several episodes wouldn't exist . I do, however, own this plot. IT'S MINE!! MUWAHAHAHAHAHAA

Well, I've kept you guys waiting long enough! ENJOY GUYS!!! BUT BE PREPARED!!! This is the longest chapter for this story so far!! ...I think...haha, it sure seems like it, and I had some issues with the formating as well, so the spacing might be a little out of wack ...BUT ANYWAYZ!! READ!!!

'Blah' Normal stuff

_'Blah' Dream sequences/ Flashbacks_

TTTTTTTTTTTT

_**last time**_ _Bon jour!_ _Catherine here! Well I can't express how furious I am at ze moment. I swear that Ken bastard vill pay! ARGH!! He ruined my favorite dress! ...But of course I am worried about ze others too! The battles were intense and many of us were severely injured, but none of us can compare to Taichi. He had ze brilliant idea to cut a rope that vas keeping the chandelier to ze ceiling and almost got himself killed! Oooh, I hope he iz okay..._

TTTTTTTTTTTT

The wind was blowing ominously on the chilly, early autumn evening. Citizens were beginning to light fires in their hearths as families were once again reunited from another long day at the market or their respectable occupations. But despite the happiness that seemed to radiate from the warmth of these homes, Ichijouji was in a state of unrest.

Since the attack on Ichijouji castle life had been hard for the majority of the city; several new laws had been passed since the Prince of Thieves crashed the Prince's ball that many found outrageous. For instance, citizen's rights were all but abolished; trials were now a luxury that many couldn't afford, and with the large amounts of money being offered for any information on the Prince's whereabouts many had been unjustly accused of being in liege with the demon.

Another luxury many took for granted that was now stripped from them was privacy; citizens were now subjected to random searches by Ichijouji officials and soldiers at any given moment of the day, letters in and out of the city were being read for any code words that could point soldiers in the direction of the Prince's hiding place, and no one was allowed to leave the city by carriage or wagon unless they agreed to a thorough search of all their belongings and cargo.

Needless to say, the citizens' anger was simmering like the lava in a volcano preparing to erupt, and now the talk of rebellion had resurfaced. Many small groups of brave (and foolish) young men and women were forming under the very eyes of the tyrants and were discussing plots of revolt that would, most certainly, lead to their demise.

Everywhere the air was thick with the tension for the events that were to unfold over the next few days. The church bells were beginning to sound more and more like death tolls as the days continued passing at a leisurely pace that was driving everyone mad.

One such citizen, young but with much experience, was walking down the cobblestone streets that evening. To any passerby he would seem like the normal picture of a prosperous youth taking an evening stroll around the main streets, but to the eyes of anyone with a sharp mind it was apparent that he was up to something; His calculating eyes would scan the street and the shops and houses around it with terrifying precision that would've had any mortal shivering under such a cold gaze. All his senses were alert and listening intently to everything around him, ranging from the soft crunch of damp leaves beneath his feet to the whispers of small groups huddled on street corners. Everything and anything could be important, this was his motto, and he stuck by it with fierce pride.

This intelligent young man was one of the main conspirators against the Ichijoujis, in liege with the most notorious rebellion group in the entire city, the Thieves. Now, the question you must all be asking yourselves is 'Could this young man be one of the members of the central core of the infamous Thieves?' The answer is no. In fact, he was offered a position but politely refused it for the safety of his parents and other family members still living within the hellish city. He, instead, chose a profession that allowed him to help these good people, but also make an honest living…. or at least as honest as a spy's life _could_ be. Yes, this clever young man was a spy for rebel forces, but not just any spy, he was the spy_master_, and, not to brag or anything, but he was quite good at his job.

At an early age he found himself intrigued by the many different languages of the world, and soon became fluent in almost all of them. He could read lips from across a room as though said person were standing in front of him and discussing with him, in a very detailed description, whatever it was they were talking about. He was also very gifted with the different types of body language, and could easily tell when someone was lying to him thanks to the useful skill. He was a master at codes and signals and excelled in acting and disguising himself. But above all, this young man held the two most important qualities any spy needed: stealth and a sagacious curiosity.

He glanced around casually to assure himself that he wasn't being followed, then turned down an alley and vanished into the darkness.

He was not a fighter. If anyone got a good look at him they would all agree to this statement; he had no excess muscle other than the muscle mass required to survive, his hands were still somewhat soft from not being forced to work too much with weaponry or tools, and his clothes proved that his job paid nicely without too much work involved. Sure, he knew he could handle a knife or a small blade of some sort if the situation demanded it, but for the most part he relied on his mind to help him out of situations as desperate as that. So as he began treading through the dangerous, vermin filled alleys of the Second District he was sure to be extremely cautious.

The suspicious eyes of the poor and unfortunate followed him, watching every move he made with savage interest, the way a pack of predators might study their prey before jumping on the defenseless creature and tearing it limb from limb.

The young man shuddered at the vivid image that was produced in his mind and he hastened his steps. '_Damnit! I probably should've changed before coming anywhere near this place,' _he realized as he noted the way these broken souls stared at his expensive looking clothes. A few of the larger men and women looked tempted to jump him, eyeing him hungrily as though they could already taste the food selling his clothing would bring them.

He felt extremely uncomfortable, so uncomfortable in fact he didn't notice one of them stand up in front of him to block his path until he felt his chest bounce off the fleshy surface of the man's belly.

"Gimme your shoes kid."

The young man stared at this unexpected adversary, surveying him; A large -- no, make that VERY large man who was beginning to lose his hair, making him around 45 years of age… he was just recently stripped of everything, Henry realized, judging by the size of his stomach and the good health that still radiated from his cheeks, and simply by listening to his brief command the young man guessed he had little to no education. Perfect. The big and dumb types were always fun to make fools of.

"Hey kid! Whatcha lookin' at! Gimme your shoes!"

"No." The young man replied smoothly, trying to walk around the oaf, but the behemoth threw his arm out and knocked him on his backside.

"What you say punk!" The large man grabbed him by his shirt collar, "What you say!"

The so-called "punk" rolled his eyes, "Listen, I'd _love_ to stay and have an insipid chat with you, but I'm late for an important meeting and would appreciate being replaced on the floor."

The man that will henceforth be dubbed as Large Man blinked at the use of profound words before snarling, "You insulting me ya little rat!" He shook him in his fat, meaty fist, "I'll teach ya to make a fun of me!"

"HEY!"

Large Man dropped his huge clenched fist and looked around in confusion before spotting the intruder; dressed in a dark blue cloak with the hood shielding his eyes was, what Large Man could only guess, another punk kid that was looking to get his ass kicked. "Yous wantin' a beating too?"

"Let him go." The cloaked figure commanded, beginning to advance towards the scene.

Large Man chuckled, "And what'll ya do if I don't? Huh? You gonna kill me?" His laugh echoed around the alley, however he was too absorbed in his own hysterics to notice the other occupants of the alley slowly evacuate the area. They weren't dumb, they knew he was one of _them_…. the demons, and they didn't plan on getting in the way when the cloaked figure destroyed the moronic man.

Large Man was still chuckling when he glanced around and noticed his audience had disappeared. Unnerved, he turned his attention back on the cloaked figure who continued to steadily advance towards him, this caused Large Man to instinctively take a step back.

"Actually," the cloaked figure smirked, his voice as smooth as black velvet. He moved one arm beneath the cover of his cloak towards his belt, "I might." In one swift motion he extracted his sword from its sheath, his eyes glinting in the darkness with an iciness that persuaded Large Man to drop his victim and scurry back into the maze of alleys, screaming.

Satisfied with the outcome of what just occurred, the cloaked figure replaced his sword before walking the short distance between himself and the fallen spymaster. "You alright Henry?" He asked, offering a hand to the disgruntled teen.

Henry rolled his eyes, "Wonderful." He accepted the cloak figure's hand and jumped to his feet, "Thank you Yamato." Yamato shrugged in reply to Henry's gratitude before the duo continued towards the Thieves' temporary hideout. There was a long moment of awkward silence before Henry finally gathered the nerve to ask the question burning in his mind, "How is he?"

Yamato knew precisely which "he" Henry was referring to, since "he" had been the main topic of nearly every conversation held over the past week. He ran a hand through his blonde hair, "Not good, according to Jyou anyway. His bones are repositioned correctly so hopefully they'll heal faster, but…." He sighed, shaking his head slightly, "The idiot's exhausted, it's obvious, but he hasn't had any decent rest since he woke up."

Henry arched an eyebrow at this, "Last I heard rest was _all_ he was getting."

Yamato shook his head, "His injuries are serious, regardless of what he says…. I think the pain is so uncomforting he hasn't been able to sleep."

Henry nodded, "That's understandable; a broken arm, three broken ribs, and those lacerations all over him would cause anyone to lose sleep." Yamato nodded slowly, his eyes attaining a far-off look. "You're really worried about him, aren't you." Henry said. This was not a question, just Henry stating a fact.

Yamato smiled slightly, "Of course, Tai's like my brother. Besides, I'd hate to see what would happen to Ichijouji without him. Don't ever repeat this Henry," he glanced around cautiously, as though he were afraid of being overheard, "I think we, as the Thieves, give the citizens hope, but without Tai...I don't think _we_ would have any hope to continue with this. We've all gotten a taste of what life would be like without him recently and I've got one word to describe it; bleak."

Henry laughed, "I don't doubt it."

The duo's voices instantly became hushed as they neared their destination; a beautiful white marble church that took up a great majority of the street they were currently treading.

"And Mimi's friend?"

Yamato smirked as he gave his friend a sidelong glance, "I won't even go to the trouble of asking how you know about her." He noted the mischievous glint in Henry's eyes as they began to climb up the numerous stairs leading up to the large double doors. "She's fine, still unconscious though. Mimi has been extremely worried about her, but Jyou assures her it's nothing too serious."

"She's been comatose for almost a week and he still believes that?" His voice betrayed his skepticism.

Yamato narrowed his eyes at this statement but didn't turn to address his companion, "Jyou knows what he's talking about."

Henry didn't reply.

"Matt!"

Yamato's head snapped towards the door at the sound of the urgent whisper, a young woman about his age, give or take a few years, was standing in the doorway of the church, motioning urgently for them to get inside.

Yamato felt uneasy at the alarmed tone used in her normally cheerful voice. He glanced at Henry before the duo jogged up the remainder of the flight of stairs and into the safety of the Coventry.

"What's the matter Mai?"

Mai quickly grasped the handle of the large sliding lock and growled as she tried to slide it into place, "The monastery a few blocks away just sent a carrier pigeon," she paused to change her position, her back now leaning against the handle of the lock as she dug her heels into the floor, "And there are," pausing once again to catch her breath she switched back to trying her previous position, "soldiers in the – AH!"

Yamato shook his head, "Mai, I think you spend more time on the floor than you do on your feet."

Mai glared at the blonde from her position on the floor, the lock firmly in place, "It's not my fault this was the only place Koushiro could find for me to stay! I'm not exactly _nun material_."

"Well that goes without saying," Henry winked before offering his hand to the pouting young woman.

Mai swatted his hand away and rose gracefully to her feet. "Anyway," Mai said as she smoothed the wrinkles from her simple nun attire; a white dress with a dark blue robe billowing over it, a wooden cross hung around her neck. "The carrier pigeon was sent to me by a friend of mine, and he says there are soldiers in the area. He said not to worry though; they didn't search the monastery, so it's unlikely they'll search our Coventry. But now to the important stuff! Did anything interesting happen in the square today? Any new gossip or rumors about you guys?"

The two males rolled their eyes, but it was Henry that decided to speak, "Honestly Mai, unless you want the night watch to discover your whereabouts you should start acting more wholesome."

Mai glared at the blue haired youth, her cheeks flushed with anger and clashing profoundly with her long indigo hair, "Henry, if this were not a place of God, your ears would be ringing with the profanity I would love to say to you." With that said, she straightened, placed her chin in the air, and left the two gentlemen with a regal elegance that would've had any Queen impressed.

Henry beamed when she was far enough away, "Isn't she beautiful when she's angry."

Yamato rolled his eyes before following her down the corridor, muttering incoherent insults to himself as Henry proceeded with his idle wanderings. Henry was as dramatic as any actor and always needed to make a big entrance when meeting with the rest of the group.

"Why do I lower myself to such a level? I mean people suggest different career choices to me every day! But do I listen? Oh no, because who in their right mind would want the simple life of an musician or politician when I could steal stuff!"

"Yamato quit talking to yourself; you're making me fell like the sane one here."

"And we all know for a fact nothing could be further from the truth!" This comment was followed by frivolous laughter that was quickly followed by a round of "Ow, ow, ow, ow, OUCH!!"

"Stop whining Taichi, re-bandaging your arm shouldn't hurt as much as you're dramatizing it to be." Jyou scolded beside his friend's bed.

Taichi rolled his eyes, "Jyou, have you ever broken an arm?"

Jyou paused his torture session to look over the rim of his glasses at his unwilling patient. "No ….why?"

"Would you like to experience the feeling?"

"No." he said simply before going back to his work.

Mimi giggled from her position directly beside Taichi on the mattress, "Care to join us Matty?"

"OW!! Damnit Jyou! I KNOW you did that on purpose." Taichi snapped as he yanked his arm out of Jyou's grasp, holding it protectively against his chest.

Jyou chuckled, "Tai would you try acting your age for once?"

"I am acting my age, you just happen to be old mentally."

Jyou rolled his eyes, "I'm mature, and that's the difference between us."

"And that, my friend, is why you are so dull."

Yamato, along with the rest of the room, laughed at this statement. This argument was one that had been going on for years and each time it was brought up Jyou would persist that Taichi needed to grow up and be a little more mature, while Taichi, in return, would insist that Jyou loosen up and stop acting so uptight. So far this debate has had no victor.

"Having fun without me, are you? I'm crushed!"

Everyone turned to the door as Mai entered, a large smile on her face.

"Good evening Mai." Mimi greeted as their friend took a seat on the foot of the bed.

Mai blinked, a confused expression on her face. "Good evening? Since when have you been so proper Meems? Geez, we'll have to fix that, won't we Tai." Mai giggled as Mimi pouted.

"Being proper isn't a bad thing." Yamato intervened, "I think it gives you an air of sophistication." He winked in his girlfriend's direction.

Mimi smirked and gave him a peck on the cheek, "Thank you Yama, I figured you'd see the simple elegance of a sentence spoken without cursing." Yamato grinned as he wrapped an arm around her waist.

Taichi, Jyou, and Mai coughed at that precise moment, a cough that sounded suspiciously like 'kiss ass'.

The young couple glared at the other three before Yamato grabbed Taichi's injured arm and twisted it just enough to usher a yelp from his mouth.

"Ow!"

"Oh Quit being such a girl." Mimi teased.

Upon seeing the pouting expression on their friend's face, Mimi promptly burst into giggles. Yamato and Mai soon followed, and a small smile even tugged the corners of the otherwise serious Jyou's mouth. Taichi soon couldn't resist the contagious laughter of his friends and began to laugh along with them, but Taichi's laughter stopped as placed a hand on his abdomen and winced. The moment his actions were noticed the room grew deathly quiet again. He smiled at the worried looks his friends were giving him, "I'm fine."

Jyou shook his head. Behind that smile it was obvious he was suffering from his injuries, he was just too stubborn to admit it. But anyone who just looked at him could see that; he had bandages covering almost every visible area of skin thanks to Ken's horrible treatment and Taichi's stunt with the chandelier.

Jyou shook his head. If these kinds of injuries had happened to any other person he would have been sure there was no possible way they would be able to even last the night. If this were any other person he would have given up hope on their recovery. If this were any other person he would've advised everyone to pick out a lovely spot for the grave.

But this was his friend Taichi.

Jyou rubbed the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. He had met Hikari, Yamato, Taichi, Takeru, and Mimi when he was still a novice in the medical business. They had just escaped capture from a large number of guards and a couple of them were hurt.

You can take a wild guess as to who.

Yamato's leg had been broken and he was leaning on Takeru and Hikari for support, while Taichi had a nasty gaping wound in his side where a sword had cut through him while he was helping Yamato off the ground. These injuries were pretty minor judging by all the cases Jyou had seen before, but there were complications that made them deadly.

Mimi had told him they received those wounds two days prior to their meeting. None of them knew how to treat Yamato's leg, and Taichi had developed a fever after the cut got infected since they were living on the streets. Thanks to their lack of malnutrition they were both in very serious condition by the time Mimi, Hikari and Takeru finally convinced them to go see a doctor.

Jyou had been the only one there at the time, since it was his family that owned a quaint little house that supplied the second district with medical attention. After he checked them out, he fixed Yamato's leg and did whatever he could to bring Taichi's fever down...but nothing was working. Finally he told Taichi flat out that he was probably going to die, but Taichi said something that he didn't expect:

"Sorry Jyou, but I have to disagree with you."

Jyou was stunned, to say the least. He'd heard about denial in patients, but Taichi looked so calm, as if he knew he wasn't going to die yet.

"I've gone through too much to die due to a simple fever. If I was supposed to die at a young age then I would've been dead years ago."

And to Jyou's astonishment his fever started going down on its own over the next couple of days!!

Jyou shook his head, he still had no logical explanation to use for that incident. And over the years more and more of these miraculous occasions occurred with the five of them. It was mind boggling! When all signs point to a death amongst the thieves, somehow they heal! But Jyou had long ago given up logic when dealing with his friends, there was something almost mystical about them and he really didn't want to learn what that something was. Some things were better left unknown so that their magic continued to work.

"**KNOCK, KNOCK!**!"

Mai turned her head towards the door before jumping off the mattress. She straightened her dress before addressing her friends, "I'll be right back."

The four thieves watched her leave.

"Who would be visiting the Coventry this late?" Taichi asked suspiciously.

"It's always open." Jyou stated as he once again began to rebandage Taichi's arm, "I'm sure people come all the time."

"Yea, quit being so suspicious," Mimi laughed as she ruffled his hair, something she knew the brunette hated.

"Hey!" he exclaimed as he shook his head. "Why are you guys always picking on me?"

There was a long moment of silence before all three of them responded in unison, "Because it's fun." This retort caused the small group to launch into fits of laughter.

However, the laughter stopped abruptly when the doors flew open and a very exhausted looking Henry stumbled into the room, "Sorry to barge in without any formal announcement or dramatic effects, but there are soldiers at the gate!"

The occupants of the room glanced at one another before turning to Taichi for instruction.

Taichi didn't hesitate with dishing out orders, "Mimi, I asked Mai to place some spare uniforms in the chest over there in case something like this were to happen, Yamato hide under the bed and don't move, Henry and Jyou get in the other beds and act sick. If we don't fool these idiots we're all in for it."

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

"**DAMN. THEM. ALL!!!"**

A servant widened his eyes as he dropped to the ground, narrowly missing a golden goblet that bounced off the wall where his head had been moments before.

"Are you alright?"

The servant boy, a kid around the age of eleven, nodded numbly as the young woman with soft eyes and brown shoulder-length hair gently helped him to his feet and placed herself slightly in front of him.

Jeri smiled reassuringly at the boy and the other slaves and servants within the King's chambers. She was among the unlucky few that were in the King's presence at the moment. He had been taking his meals in his room, refusing to leave until the entire castle was combed for more enemies. The King had definitely become slightly paranoid since the attack at the ball; not only did he refuse to leave his room, but he had hired extra slaves to test his food for any poisons. All servants and slaves were interrogated through the most brutal of methods to ensure that they weren't responsible for allowing the thieves within the castle. More guards were hired after the particularly cruel series of executions following the attack where the King punished all those he felt responsible for the escape of the Prince of Thieves. And, to make matters worse for the citizens of Ichijouji, new laws and taxes were put in place.

The reward for the Thieves capture was tripled, and the amount of money was beginning to tempt those that were having financial difficulties, even if the thieves had helped them previously. But with this incredible amount of money being waved before the eyes of the desperate citizens, false accusations were beginning to tear the city apart as innocents were taken to the castle to await their judgment.

Jeri shook her head; it was incredible how pitiful people could be.

"You there! Bring me another drink!" the King raged as he pointed to another random slave, this time a girl younger than the boy that was currently hiding behind Jeri's skirts. The girl, shocked that she was being address, scrambled to her feet before racing out of the room to fetch what the King required.

"**I SWEAR ON MY FATHER'S GRAVE THOSE STREET RATS—" **a fit of coughing interrupted what was sure to be a _beautiful_ speech.

The other occupants of the room shuddered as they tried to make themselves as invisible as possible in the luxurious room.

Jeri had only been in the King's chambers a few times prior to her present visit, she was normally in the kitchens preparing food for the royal family or lurking in dark corners trying to overhear interesting bits of information to pass on to Takato, but every time she entered it she was overwhelmed by the elegance and size. Her house, a small residence in the second district, was smaller than the sitting room alone and much less lavishly decored. These grand chambers were truly fit for a King with five rooms all to himself; a sitting room, bedroom, dining room, bathroom, and throne room, all with their extravagant furnishes of velvet, gold, silver, leather, and silks.

The sitting room, the room she was currently standing in, had a giant, glorious obsidian fireplace with silver trimmings that was located on the far end of the room; two red velvet chairs were placed before the black masterpiece. There was a throne with its own dais seated to the immediate left of the door, behind it the Ichijouji banner hung in all its evil glory. Throughout the rest of the massive room were chairs, tables, couches, vases, and other pieces of artwork and furniture scattered randomly to show off the wealth this family had attained through harsh taxes, stealing, and bribery.

It sickened Jeri to know that such greed existed.

!!BANG!!

Jeri jumped at the sudden sound, nearly dropping the golden tray on which she carried the King's silver dishes and leftovers from his dinner. She turned her head around slowly, trying to conceal the interest sparkling in her eyes, but when she saw who the intruder was her eyes widened significantly.

Standing in the doorway, shirtless but covered in bandages and red-faced, was the Prince.

"Ken! My boy what are you doing up! You should be in the hospital wing!"

Ken didn't reply but stormed into the room, his dark eyes glittering with murderous intent. "Where. Is. He?"

The King gave his only son and heir a confused look. "He?"

"The Prince of Thieves you lumbering oaf!! Where is that god damned bastard! WHERE. IS.

HE?"

The King blinked rapidly, "Ken, we—"

"**DON'T TELL ME YOU LET HIM GET AWAY!!"**

The King's dark eyes became steely. "Now listen here boy, I am your father and I refuse to be talked to in such a manner by my son!! I am not some commoner that can be ordered around! I am your father and I am your King and I will be treated as such!"

Ken glared at his father. "I can't believe you let him get away! AND AFTER WHAT HE DID TO ME!"

"SHUT UP BOY! I sent every guard after them but they escaped!!" the King's explanation was soon interrupted by another coughing fit.

_Now... why doesn't that surprise me_...Ken though viciously. "Fine. Since you are incapable of finding him and his gang of rats _I_ will go searching for him!" Ken spun on his heels and marched out of the room, fury practically radiating off of his skin.

"Ken! KEN!! STOP! AS YOUR FATHER I COMMAND YOU!!" the King began coughing again, his face slowly turning an unhealthy shade of purple.

"WHAT IS IT!" Ken demanded.

"I forbid you (cough) from (cough) leaving, you (cough) ungrateful brat!"

Ken turned to him, a challenging glint in his eyes, "Oh? And what will you do if I disregard your restriction?"

"**YOU NEED TO LEARN YOUR PLACE YOU FOOLISH BOY!!"** he bellowed before another round of coughing overtook him. "I am (cough) still the King (cough) therefore (cough cough) I have reign (cough) over you!" Still coughing he signaled to his bodyguards to apprehend his son. "Take him back to the hospital wing (cough cough cough) and don't let him leave!"

Ken scowled as the bodyguards ushered him out of the room and towards the hospital wing.

Jeri watched him go nervously, she glanced at all the other servants searching for signs that she wasn't the only one that had had heard Ken's exiting statement. The servants and slaves were glancing at the doors, fear evident on their faces, and Jeri was comforted slightly in knowing that she wasn't just hearing things... but only slightly. She swallowed hard; this needed to be passed to Takato immediately.

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

"This is a waste of time. How are _we_ supposed to find him?"

"Quiet! Speaking in such a manner is treasonous. Do you wish to get us all hanged?!?"

The Ichijouji soldier turned to his superior and raised an eyebrow. "Do you think we have any hope of finding him or any of the other traitors?"

The higher-ranking Ichijouji soldier chanced a sidelong glance at the less experienced soldier. "Being in a less experienced group, our chances aren't as great as those of the Black Squadron, who deal with this sort of thing on a daily basis, but the King's orders were for all able bodies to be on the lookout for the Prince of Thieves, so it's not our place to express our opinions."

"But does the King honestly believe any of these civilians are idiotic enough to be housing someone as infamous as the Prince of Thieves?"

"You'd be surprised. The Black Squadron has located the vast majority of escaped convicts, runaway slaves, and wanted men in civilian homes. It's ridiculous. Citizens complain about not having enough food to feed their families, and yet they'll welcome in a wanted man and feed him from their own rationed stores."

"But those are people that have been taken away from their homes. Runaways, convicts, and wanted men all have families and people who are willing to risk their lives to protect them, but the Prince of Thieves is dangerous. He's killed thousands! Who would be willing to protect someone so villainous?

The group of soldiers stopped outside a large building with warm, luminous lights radiating in the windows, welcoming the soldiers from the dark streets of the Second District. The captain of the troops turned to the questioning youth and replied in a very dignified manner, "That's what we're trying to find out." Nodding to his troop in a silent command to keep a lookout, he and two other soldiers broke away from the lines and marched up to the door, as they had for the past five hours.

The captain walked up the beautiful steps leading to a large granite door with a simple wooden crucifix in the center. He balled up his fist and rammed it against the door several times before stepping away from it to give the door room to swing open.

After a few moments the door opened slowly and a young woman with long indigo colored hair and dark eyes revealed herself. "Good evening officers." She wore a long white dress with a dark blue robe covering her shoulders, a cross hanging from her neck.

"Good evening Sister." The captain replied, inclining his head in a sign of respect.

"How can I help you on this beautiful evening?"

"Sister, I'm sure you've heard of the dramatic escape of the Prince of Thieves."

"Yes I have." She replied, her soft, elegant voice showing no shock or concern in the matter.

"Well, as decreed by King Ichijouji, I'm afraid I have been ordered to search the premises."

The young woman nodded. "Of course officers." She slowly moved the door towards the wall and stepped aside to allow them entrance.

The captain nodded. "Thank you Sister." He turned around and motioned for his squadron to step into the church and begin their search. The soldiers complied and soon the clanging sound of metallic footsteps echoed around the walls of the abbey.

The soldiers were split into small groups ranging from two to four men. The groups with four men were sent to search the courtyards, kitchens, and worshiping areas, the groups of threes began to investigate hallways and storage areas, and the groups of twos were sent to comb through the infirmary and bedrooms. The captain himself stayed to interrogate the nun that had allowed them entrance.

"So, Sister, have you seen anything...strange as of late?"

"Strange, officer?" Mai asked, deciding to play dumb.

"Yes...strange as in...cloaked figures running around, suspicious characters asking to stay the night...anything out of the ordinary."

Mai chuckled, "Officer, I don't think you fully understand our mission here in this Coventry. We do not turn away anyone from the street because we are all God's children. And as for cloaks," she stopped to laugh again, "forgive me officer, but the weather is beginning to get colder and many in the Second District can't afford the finer coats and shawls worn by the higher classes. Cloaks are the only pieces of warm clothing most people here can afford, so, naturally I see people running around wearing cloaks all day."

The captain's good mood slowly diminished, "I see."

"I apologize for not being able to assist you any further officer." Mai bowed her head slightly, but was inwardly congratulating herself. She had been taking acting lessons with that arrogant pig Henry, just in case a situation like this occurred. She required a lot of work, but judging by the non-skeptical looks the captain was giving her she realized she must've sounded at least somewhat convincing.

She bit her lip to keep from smiling. Her part in this charade was almost complete, now all she needed was wait for the soldiers to finish their rounds and usher them out quietly. Maybe this whole rebellion thing wasn't nearly as difficult as she'd originally suspected.

"Let's look in here." A soldier suggested to his partner as they approached the infirmary. The man twisted the doorknob and opened the room.

Now it just so happens that these particular soldiers weren't present for the unveiling of the Prince of Thieves' true identity. They knew not what their prey looked like, nor had they any idea of what any of the other thieves looked like. Under any other circumstance, soldiers outside of the Black Squadron that had no knowledge of what their prey looked like would not be searching for wanted criminals so late into the evening. But the King hadn't been in his right state of mind the last several days after the attack upon his ball, and when he sent out the order he didn't take into consideration that two untrained soldiers might end up waltzing into the very room where this esteemed criminal was currently hiding.

"Oh! Good evening officers." A young woman rose from her seat beside an occupied bed and curtsied to the high-ranking men. She, like all the other women in the abbey, wore a long white dress and a blue robe but she also wore a white shawl draped over her hair to conceal it from prying eyes.

"Good evening Sister. Might we have a look around? We have orders to search every room."

The young woman replied, "You may, but may I ask a favor of you? We have several patients staying with us this evening; all three of them have terrible cases of the Mumps and desperately require their rest. So could I ask you to please be quiet and allow them to continue sleeping?"

The soldiers exchanged glances. "I don't see why that would be a problem. We'll be as quiet as these suits allow us to be."

The young woman smiled gratefully and curtsied to them once more. "I thank you." With that she returned to her seat besides one of the patients and placed a hand on his cheek. Her eyes widened when she felt the drastic temperature change on his forehead, "Tai you're burning up!" she whispered furiously as her arm darted towards a small bowl filled with water on the nightstand. Extracting a soaked cloth from a water basin she carefully preceded in smearing the cool water across the burning forehead of the occupant of the bed.

She narrowed her eyes as she listened to the soldiers scurrying behind her; moving furniture, looking through drawers, and creating a mess in general. Honestly, if nuns weren't given the benefit of the doubt then she had no idea what the world was coming to. Her attention was suddenly drawn to her patient as he gripped the mattress, his face contorted in pain. She gently placed her hand on his cheek, "It's alright Taichi." She glanced behind her before double-checking to make sure his bandaged arm was covered completely by his sheets. If the soldiers saw the bandaging they might question her, and she couldn't afford that.

"Well, I told the captain there wouldn't be anything here. Why the hell would a bunch of nuns hide the Prince of Thieves? Let's go, he's obviously not here. Good evening to you Sister."

"Good evening gentlemen," she said smiling. When she heard the door close she ripped off her shawl, allowing her honey colored hair to tumble over her shoulders. "They're gone."

Henry immediately sprung from the bed, "I'll make sure Mai is alright."

As he made a dash for the door Yamato quickly intercepted him, "No you won't. Soldiers might still be lurking around, and the last thing we need if for you to be identified and questioned. Mai will come when she's made sure they're gone."

Henry rolled his eyes and waved a hand dismissively, "Fine." He then walked over to where the rest of the group was gathered and bowed towards the leader of the Thieves. "Your Highness, I must commend you on your performance at the castle. Absolutely inspiring, and I'm not the only one who thinks so; the whole city's still abuzz from the rumors leaking from the castle."

Taichi grinned weakly and turned to Yamato, "See! I knew that stunt would work towards our advant—OUCH!" His attention was fixated on Jyou in an instant, who, against Taichi's wishes, was once again attempting to bandage his broken arm, "Do you enjoy tormenting me?"

"Do you want an honest answer?"

Taichi opened his mouth to respond but thought better of it, "No, not really."

Jyou smirked, "Thought so."

Mimi sighed as she claimed the chair besides Yamato and rested her head on his shoulder, "I miss our home."

Yamato took her hand in his and squeezed it comfortingly, "So do I."

"At least the two of you can leave." Taichi muttered angrily. It wasn't that he didn't appreciate everything Mai was doing for them, the exact opposite really; if she hadn't allowed them a place to stay in such a desperate situation his chances of survival were slim to none, according to Jyou anyway. She basically saved his life. But he wasn't one that enjoyed being kept inside for more than a few days, and this place was beginning to grow tiring despite the beauty and tranquility it brought to his normally chaotic lifestyle.

"—do you promise Tai?"

Taichi blinked, "What?"

Jyou sighed, "Do you promise to get some sleep tonight?"

Taichi nodded, rolling his eyes, "Yes _mom_."

The occupants of the room chuckled at this response before Yamato called attention to the time, "Well come on you three, let's let Taichi have his beauty sleep, we all know how much he needs it." Yamato smirked, receiving a pillow to the face in reply. Yamato laughed and threw it back at his friend before he joined Henry, Mimi, and Jyou outside of the infirmary. Yamato's smile vanished, however, the moment he saw the grave expression on the doctor's face.

"How is he in reality Jyou? Behind the mask." Mimi asked nervously.

Jyou made sure the door to the infirmary was closed. "Not good, not good at all." He shook his head as he rubbed his temples.

"But, what does that mean? How bad is "not good"?" Henry questioned.

Jyou sighed, "His fever hasn't broken, and that's what's worrying me the most. A fever is the body's way of fighting off viruses and bacteria from infections and for it not to be receding even after all the days he's had to recover..."

"What do you think it means?" Henry asked.

Jyou sighed, "Either the infections were worse than I thought or... his energy level isn't rising." Seeing their confused expressions Jyou realized he would have to go into detail. "During his stay in Ichijouji castle he lost most of his energy due to the lack of food provided for him, plus he was also being mistreated during all this time so whatever energy he had remaining was trying to repair his injuries. When he showed up at the ball he shouldn't have even been able to stand, let alone fend of Ken the way he did. If I didn't know Tai as well as I do, I would've told you at the castle that he was going to die that night."

_TTTT_

_Koushiro and Jyou were still crowded around Daisuke's comatose body, flipping frantically through the pages of Koushiro's log book for any indication that Daisuke would react negatively to any of the medicines Jyou had brought with him. _

"_Damnit!" Koushiro exclaimed as he slammed his book shut. "Nothing!" He tossed his book to the side and placed his head in his hands, gripping his hair with every intention to rip it out. _

_Jyou stared at his friend, realizing just how distressed the redhead was when he caught sight of the mud being absorbed into the important documents in his logbook. Jyou rose to his feet and picked up the small, but vital, journal from the damp grass, brushing away the dirt sticking to the black velvet cover. "Izzy," he knelt in front of his friend, "if Daisuke's heart rate begins to decrease then we'll have reason to worry, but until there is some drastic change in his condition there is nothing we can do. We can't leave the others just yet." _

_Koushiro sighed, lifting his head, "I know Jyou, I'm furious with myself for not carrying something as important as medical records with me at all times." He shook his rich red locks as if to clear his head of the tantalizing emotions plaguing his thoughts. "We need to get out of here. There's something…not right about this place." _

_Jyou nodded in agreement before turning his attention back to the castle where warm and cheerful lights beckoned them inside, like Venus flytraps coaxing their prey into their mouths before snapping shut and sucking the life from the unfortunate insects. _

_It was terrifying. _

_The waiting. Not knowing what was occurring not even a mile away from your current position. Not knowing the well being of the people you've come to call your family._

"_Koushiro?" _

_The two intelligent thieves looked away from the castle and turned their brooding minds away from the people screaming as they raced away from the palace towards their carriages._

"_Yes Zoe?"_

_She smiled kindly at the twosome, trying to offer some form of comfort to the stressing elite members. Calmly, she placed a clipboard in Koushiro's lap. "I finished interviewing the other refugees, and I recorded some places that came to mind where they could stay until they find jobs." _

_Koushiro and Jyou's eyes widened. "You did?" _

"_Well, Koji and Kouichi were really the brains behind it, Takuya helped too. We just…." She glanced at the castle before averting her eyes to the floor. "Wanted to help." _

"_Thank you." Koushiro smiled. "And thank the others for us, too."_

_Zoe nodded before retreating back to the small group huddled together beside the carriages. _

"_Wow." _

_Jyou looked away from the youngest members to see a genuine smile on his friend's previously distraught face. "What?" _

_Koushiro grinned as he passed the clipboard to the spectacled young adult. "They did an impressive job." _

_Jyou's eyebrows shot up. It was extremely rare for Koushiro to give any form of compliment to the younger thieves, aloud at least. But as Jyou, too, began inspecting everything written upon the pieces of parchment he found himself nodding with satisfaction as well. He felt the corners of his mouth twitch upward with each piece of data recorded…until reaching one name. _

"_J.P?" He turned to Koushiro with a questioning expression._

_Koushiro sighed. "Don't tell me it's the same J.P I didn't finish interviewing earlier." He ripped the clipboard from Jyou's grasp and, after scanning it for a couple of seconds, hit the surface against his forehead. "Great. He has no skills, no family, and no home. What the hell are we supposed to do with him?!?"_

_Jyou quickly disguised a laugh by making it sound like a cough. "You're trying to tell me this kid sums up to nothing?" Jyou shook his head, "I can't believe that. Everyone has some sort of talent." _

"_Not this one." Koushiro groaned. Jyou gave him the same quizzical expression and Koushiro lowered the clipboard across his knees. "The kid does magic tricks." _

"_Magic tricks?" _

"_Yes." _

_Jyou instantly brightened. "He could work at the orphanage! I'm sure the younger children would love an entertainer!" _

_Koushiro looked ready to retort, but J.P himself confirmed what Koushiro was about to say._

"_Look pal, I don't know what your problem is but –" _

"_My problem right now, is you! We're trying to discuss something important and I think we would all appreciate it if you could leave for a moment so we can get this done."_

"_Whatever you have to say in your little "meeting" you can say in front of me." _

_Takuya sighed. "Umm…under any other circumstances I wouldn't argue with you, but this is a matter of urgency and we can't have you –"_

"_Urgency? You guys are just kids! What kind of urgent things could you guys possibly need to accomplish? If anything you should be thanking me for stepping in and lending you some of my superior intelligence." _

_This statement obviously annoyed the younger squads and it wasn't long until the more violent members of the thieves stood up to protest. _

_Jyou nodded when he watched Rika, Ryo, and all the other younger members gang up on the refugee. "He's a bit overbearing isn't he?" _

"_A bit?" _

_Jyou chuckled. "One of us should probably go break up their debate." He started to rise to his feet, but Koushiro raised a hand to stop him._

"_Those members are under Takuya's command while Taichi, Daisuke, and Takato aren't here. Let's see what he can do." _

_Jyou gave him a look before smiling; "You know you're leaving him in a snake pit?"_

_Koushiro shrugged, "He needs the experience." _

"_And the revenge isn't bad either, right Izzy?" _

_Koushiro smirked in reply._

_Together the eldest members of the assembled group watched the scene unfold. Takuya surprised both of them by standing up to Rika, who was normally a very intimidating opponent in a shouting match…or anything else for that matter. Jyou inwardly clapped when the situation was brought under control by some quick thinking from the youngest of Taichi's predecessors. _

"_Do you think he knows what he's doing when he picks them?" _

"_Who? Takuya?" _

_Jyou rolled his eyes, "No. Taichi." _

_Koushiro turned his attention back to Takuya and smirked. "I don't think we'll ever really know. I swear Hikari and Taichi have a sixth sense or something, it's unnerving at times." _

"_Yea, tell me about—Whoa! Hey Izzy, what's happening over there?!?" _

_Koushiro stared at his companion for a moment before following his line of sight. When his eyes fell upon the sight before him he bit his lip nervously. The lights in the castle had gone out._

"_Whatever it is, it can't be anything good." Koushiro murmured. He quickly rose to his feet and rushed over towards the younger members. The situation demanded a leader, and at the moment Koushiro was the next in line. He quickly ran all the positions needing to be filled for this unexpected twist, and then calculated which thief would be best suited for each assignment._

"_Guys!" A hush instantly fell over the group. "Kouichi get all the refugees into a single carriage now! Rika, I want you to ride inside with them in case their hands start itching for any of the gold we've stolen. Iori, I need you and Takuya to get Daisuke into the other carriage while Ryo retrieves Takato from his spying post." _

"_Zoe and Koji stay here in case we need extra hands. The rest of you get out of here now!" Jyou finished. _

_They all nodded. None of them knew what had alerted their mentors' to act so rashly, but they were trained to act now and ask questions later._

_Koushiro and Jyou instinctively grasped their weapons and made a mad dash towards the castle entrance once all the carriages, save for two, were tiny dots on the horizon. _

"_I hope everyone's okay." Jyou thought aloud._

"_Me too," Koushiro panted as he struggled to keep up with the older thief. "Damnit! I'm not built to be the athletic type!" _

_Jyou rolled his eyes. "Neither am I! That's why we're usually the brains of the operations."_

_Koushiro laughed before his eyes suddenly grew wide. Grasping Jyou's elbow and digging his heels into the ground, he managed to skid them to a halt. "We can't go that way." _

_Jyou nodded; upon their suddenly stop he caught sight of the huge crowd of people standing in front of the entrance, screaming orders at one another as they tried to break the door down. "It's locked from the inside." In a matter of seconds the duo proceeded towards a window, only to find them locked as well. _

"_You've got to be kidding me! We never discussed locking the doors! How are we supposed to get in?!"_

_Jyou bit his lower lip. "We're not, but the other Ichijouji soldiers can't get in either."_

_Koushiro saw the brilliance of the plan instantly. "Do you think it was Mimi?" _

_Jyou grinned, "I'm assuming she had help."_

_Koushiro nodded. "Alright, but we still have to get in to help –" _

"_CRASH!!!" _

_The duo was thrown off their feet by the sudden appearance of three chair legs sticking through the remaining fragments of one of the windows. They turned to look at each other with looks of shock and disbelief as they scrambled to their feet._

"_Taichi I swear I'll kill you myself if you pass out on me now!" _

"_Yamato!" _

_The blonde looked up from the ground, his eyes worried but steeled. "Thank God you guys are here! Give us a hand! Taichi you bastard you can sleep when we get home!! Stay the hell awake!!" _

"_Matt, take Taichi and get out of here, the rest of us will follow!" A demanding feminine voice shouted from within the building. The next moment Yamato jumped out of the first story window with a barely conscious Taichi leaning against him. Jyou rushed over to the two as Hikari jumped out of the window, closely followed by Michael who was carrying an unconscious woman in his arms. _

"_Jyou is he okay?!!?" Hikari screeched as she knelt down besides the doctor that was closely examining her brother. _

_Jyou didn't respond. He couldn't. He instead turned to Yamato who was also looking at him expectantly. "We have to get him home. Now." He finally turned to the younger Kamiya, "Get to the carriage and tell Koji and Zoe to get over here." _

_Hikari nodded, ripped a slit through her dress, and took off with a speed that surprised all the thieves present._

_Taichi watched her go with barely any sense of understanding, "Jyou..." he looked at the doctor and gave the smallest hint of a smile, "don't let anyone worry too much about me. I'll be fine..." _

_Mimi crouched beside him, "Is that a promise?"_

_Taichi, too exhausted to speak, nodded slowly before passing out._

_TTTT_

Mimi shook her head, "It's not fair. Tai's too wonderful to go through this kind of torment on a regular basis."

There was a long moment of silence during which all four of them found themselves agreeing with Mimi's statement. Finally the unbearable quiet was interrupted by some bittersweet news delivered from Jyou.

"Well... at least he won't suffer for a while..."

"What?" Yamato asked.

Jyou removed his glasses and wiped the lenses with the hem of his shirt, "His body is far too exhausted for him to experience any form of physical strain. So I'm forbidding him, as his doctor and friend, from all missions, tests, and raids for at least two months."

"TWO MONTHS!!" the trio shouted in unison.

"You can't be serious!"

"He won't believe that!"

"You're out of your mind if you think he'll tolerate that!"

"What's he supposed to do for two months!?"

"You're insane!"

"... Who's going to tell him?"

The outbursts stopped when Yamato asked this question.

Jyou looked at them, "I need to check on my other patients, you three figure it out." He smiled as he walked down the corridor, the trio's argument reaching his ears.

"I've got my own bad news to tell him!"

"Well so do I!"

"Oh _hell no_, you two are _**not**_ pressuring me into telling him."

TTTTTTTTTTTTTT

The room of the Prince was never one that a servant wanted to visit. The room, despite a warm fire always burning in the fireplace, was always cold and dark. He owned no candles to light the darkness during the evenings and kept his curtains drawn over his windows during the days.

This impenetrable darkness seemed to weigh a thousand pounds as the density forced down all hope and happiness from the innocent servants' minds and hearts.

They hated it.

How could anyone actually live in a place like that? It was no wonder the prince was always angry.

So when the Prince ordered them to leave, not a single one of them hesitated.

"Leave me."

The servants residing in Ken's chambers were only too happy to comply as they all dropped whatever they were doing and raced out of the room.

Ken listened to them stampede out of his room and smirked as he collapsed into one of the chairs before his fireplace, swinging his legs over the other arm in the same fashion his enemy had done about a week ago in front of all his guests.

_The Prince of Thieves. Damn him and all his meddling._ Ken thought venomously_. I knew after he and his friends escaped years ago they would become a thorn in my side_. He glared into the flames with such intensity that his eyes mirrored the blazing glow that flickered and crackled as the fire consumed the wood.

Taichi was a problem. A _very big_ problem. He and his misfits were beginning to fill the minds of the citizens with dangerous thoughts, thoughts that would pose a great nuisance in the near future. He needed to crush these thoughts quickly otherwise he would be facing a revolt, and although his solders were trained and fearless, the civilians outnumbered them 5 to 1.

He needed to make a move, a sharp but effective move that would cause the citizens to rethink their betrayal…. but what? Executions would only rally their anger further, and more laws would cause problems as well…

Realizing that his above average intellect wouldn't completely solve his problem, he summoned two of the few people he trusted, the Commander of the Black Squadron, Vamde Myotis, and the General of his own personal army, Pierro Pied.

"You requested our presence my liege." Myotis stated, bowing to the dark prince.

"Yes." Ken stated, still gazing into the fireplace. "Have you noticed the sudden change in the peasants?"

"My lord speaks of the quiet whispers of revolution?" Pied smirked.

"Precisely." Ken replied. "Do the two of you, from a military leader's point of view, believe they could stand a chance against our armies?"

It was the General who answered this question first, "In my own viewpoints sire, we have the battle expertise and the knowledge of warfare on our sides, but the civilians not only have the numbers but they also have a number of expert blacksmiths that could supply weapons for thousands, as well as a more dependent food source. In all honesty my Lord, I doubt we would be able to survive for very long against their forces."

Ken nodded slowly, "So says you Myotis?"

Myotis nodded gravely, "I'm afraid so my Lord. They would also have the advantage of having the Prince of Thieves on their side, and, aside from you my Lord, not many would be able to stand up to his swordsmanship. We have also gained the knowledge that the Thieves have created a network of spies… I'm afraid to say, but our forces wouldn't stand much of a chance."

Ken nodded, finally turning to them, "What would the two of you propose we do about this uncomfortable situation?"

"Prove to the civilians that rebellion is futile. If they don't realize just how much of an advantage they have over us then we might still have control." Pied responded.

Ken smirked, "A _wonderful_ idea General, but it's only a matter of time before they notice their important positions. We need something that will scare them or discourage them from attempting to fight."

"What if we dispose of the rebellion's leaders?"

Ken's dark eyes swerved to look at Myotis, a faint glimmer of interest shinning through the coldness, "Continue Myotis."

Myotis grinned maliciously, "The majority of the civilians, as I'm sure you've noticed my Lord, look towards the Thieves as beacons of hope. It is through their actions that the peasants gain the courage to change the way things are. If the cause of this courage were to fall it would quench the thirst for rebellion."

"Dispose of the Thieves… kill the hope." Ken mused, turning back to look at the flames. "Perhaps…. if we were to instead of kill the Thieves turn them dastardly in the kingdom's eyes maybe the rebellion would turn on those that have started it."

Pied grinned sadistically, "If we were to stage some attacks on the city and then frame the Thieves their popularity would drop tremendously."

"And with the Thieves portrayed as the enemy the civilians will shrink away from them and side with us in order to destroy the Thieves."

Ken chuckled evilly, "We'll be hitting two birds with one stone gentlemen. Destroying our most hated enemy, and winning back the trust and support of Ichijouji. Now…. we will need to put this plot into action immediately."

"Shall I inform the King?" Myotis asked.

Ken's eyes turned dark, "My father has become incompetent in his abilities to fend off adversaries like the Thieves. I'm afraid his ability, or lack thereof, to lead is what has gotten us into this mess in the first place. My father is the only flaw in my plan, and must be dealt with as all obstacles must be dealt with." Ken rose from his seat and walked over to his fireplace, taking the iron poker in his hand. He pushed the wood around for a moment before plowing the tip into one of the logs, causing sparks to fly into the air.

TTTTTTTTTTTT

Jeri clung to her red shawl as she walked steadily through the crowded market streets of Ichijouji. She was silently commending herself on acting so calm despite her mind screaming at her to race to Takato and inform him of everything she had seen the previous evening.

Remembering her lessons with Yamato and Taichi to remain inconspicuous, she paused at a vendor that was selling apples and purchased a few. Thanking the elderly woman, she continued on her route towards the ruins of the Third and Fourth Districts, pausing here and there so as not to cause the soldiers patrolling the streets to become suspicious of her.

She was still in a state of shock due to the argument that she had witnessed between the King and Prince, but it was the final statement made by the Prince that left her trembling. She wondered how Takato would handle this piece of information.

"Excuse me! Miss!"

Jeri's thoughts were put on pause when she glanced over her shoulder and saw a younger boy running towards her with something in his hand. Curious, she stopped walking in order for the boy to catch up with her, "Yes?"

"Y -- You forgot your bag," he panted, showing her the small knitted purse she always carried around with her.

Her eyes widened, "Oh! Thank you so much." She knelt in front of him and took the treasured item from him with a large smile, "And who do I have the honor of thanking?"

"My name's Tommy," he grinned.

She smiled, "Well, it's a pleasure to meet you Tommy, and to thank you for returning my bag," she placed her hand in one of her pockets and fished around until she retrieved a gold coin, "here. Treat yourself to some sweets on me."

His eyes lit up at the sum of money in his hand, "Thanks! Wait 'til I show my brother!"

She glanced over his shoulder and saw a teenager about her age leaning against a wall, an impatient and... suspicious look on his face. Jeri gulped, Tommy's brother was a member of Ichijouji's army.

"Hey Yutaka! Come here! This lady's really nice!"

Yutaka, with a roll of his eyes, walked over to his brother to see the object that had him so excited. "What is it Tommy? I'm not supposed to leave my post."

"Look!" Tommy grinned, waving the coin in front of his brother's eyes.

Yutaka's eyes widened slightly, "Wow," he turned to Jeri, "where does a girl from the Second District get this kind of money?"

Jeri narrowed her eyes, "I earned it. I work at the palace."

"You don't say. A palace job ...those are pretty tough to get... except for those forced to work there."

"You mean slaves?" Jeri felt her blood begin to boil, "Listen you, I don't care if you're an Ichijouji soldier or not, I have an honest job and I receive an honest paycheck. If you want proof I happen to have my papers with me." Furiously she began digging through her purse to uncover the important documents that included her occupation, name, address, and other important pieces of information.

_Urgh! What is this place coming to!?! I have done nothing wrong and yet this high-and-mighty soldier decides to completely ruin my day by accusing me of stealing or some other -- Wait a minute... Where are my papers_?!? Her eyes widened as she looked through all her belongings again. Nothing. "Oh no, I must've left them at home." Rolling her eyes she shut her bag and replaced it over her shoulder. "Well, I don't need to prove anything to you. I've done nothing wrong, so if you'll excuse me _officer_ I have some shopping to do."

Tommy watched his new friend storm off with a sad look in his eye. "Yutaka... was she mad because I gave you those papers?"

Yutaka glanced at his little brother, "Yes. But she doesn't know you took them."

"Stealing from her doesn't feel right. She was so nice to me."

"Yes... she was nice." Yutaka noted as he extracted Jeri's documents from the inside of his armor. "Jeri Katou. Ahhh, so this was the girl Takato was talking about."

"Takato? Oh! Takuya's friend?"

"Yes. Well, the Prince will be interested in this bit of information. Apparently he has a spy working for the Prince of Thieves within his own castle."

"She's a friend of Taichi's?"

"Yes Tommy."

Tommy's eyes lit up, "That's great! I bet she's loads of fun!"

Yutaka smirked, "It is great Tommy. It's _definitely_ great." His eyes were alight with amusement as he restored the important documents back into his breastplate. "Come on Tommy, we better get you back to Mrs. Mokobon before she starts to worry about you."

Tommy smiled, "Alright." And the two siblings left the busy street.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Sora's head was thundering in her skull. No, biggest understatement of the century; Sora's head felt like it was lying on a blacksmith's anvil and was being hit repeatedly with a heavy metal hammer.

She groaned as she shifted on her bed and pulled the sheets over her head.

_What a crazy dream…_she thought. _Everything that happened felt so real. I swear I can almost hear the sounds of swords still ringing in my ears. _

Her eyes still closed against the brilliant morning, she raised her arms over her head and yawned. Birds were chirping outside her window and the sweet smells of a cornucopia of flowers drifted lazily into the room on a warm breeze.

A smile tweaked the corners of her mouth at the peaceful atmosphere she was being awoken to, it was a nice change from the usual bustle of activity the palace was usually full of. _Everyone must still be exhausted from the party. _

She slowly opened her crimson eyes, taking in her surroundings with idle fascination, but the more she glanced around the less she recognized. The bed, she noticed, was not the extravagant four poster bed covered in a variety of silken sheets she was accustomed to, it was a simple twin sized bed dressed in clean, plain white cotton sheets that had the aroma of freshness wavering around her nostrils.

Startled by the sudden realization that she wasn't in her room, her head whipped around to absorb all of the other changes around her; there was a small table beside her bed with a vase of beautifully assorted roses rested on the polished surface, complimenting the simple oaken furniture. Above her the ceiling arched at least two stories upward, and large French windows ushered the dazzling sunlight into the simple but incredibly large room. On her left and right two dark blue cloths hanging beside her like curtains obscured her further exploration.

Fear quickly swelled within her breast. _Where the hell am_ _I_?!?! She tore her sheets off her body only to realize that her clothes had been changed too! She blinked in surprise at the long white nightshirt she was wearing instead of her blue party dress. This shirt was definitely not hers; it was at least three sizes too big as the sleeves fell far past her hands, and the hem of it came past her knees. She had never experienced such a strange combination of fear and relief at the same time, and in a moment of brief insanity she wondered how her mother would react if she could see her daughter wearing the clothes of commoners.

"I'm telling you Mimi! This is the most ridiculous scheme you've thought up to date! And that's saying something considering all of the crazy things you've forced me through."

_Mimi?_

"It is not! It's the best thing I could come up with on such short notice! And you know as well as I that Taichi can't afford any more stress in his current condition!"

_Incident?...Taichi?_

"But keeping her a secret is not the answer! If anything he'll be even more infuriated than he normally would be!"

"I understand what you're saying Jyou, I honestly do, but let's wait a few days to inform him of our…. guest. You said so yourself, his condition is still pretty serious and being "imprisoned" here as he calls it has made him irritable enough as it is."

Jyou chuckled, "Can you blame him?"

Mimi snorted, "After having his arm bones and three ribs repositioned, getting enough stitches to sew a shirt, and having all of us fussing over him every day, no I can't. I'd be driven mad by now."

"Plus it's been almost a week since he's seen the others and he's probably going out of his mind with worry," Jyou added.

Mimi laughed, "No need to remind me of that, he uses every possible moment to whine about how much he wants to get out of this place. And I'm the one that has to remind him that he's in no condition to do anything nor is it wise for him to be out in public at the present time. There are guards searching for him everywhere."

"I know. I got stopped on my way here by a group of Ichijouji soldiers claiming that I was treating the wounds of escaped convicts and runaways. I escaped barely by the skin of my teeth. I'm worried about the next actions they plan to take to catch us."

"Well the public searches were an obvious factor, but the King has also raised the taxes. I expect we'll be forced to endure more public executions by the end of the week if something isn't done."

"I agree," Jyou said, "but at the moment we'll have to lay low for a while. We can't afford Taichi finding out about any of this….at least not until he's recovered."

"Or Sora for that matter." Mimi added. "She'll feel obligated to do something as well."

"Yes….I suppose keeping them here is the wisest decision. Mai can keep a close eye on them while they're here."

"Oh! That reminds me!"

Sora quickly pulled the covers back over her legs and collapsed against the pillow as the sound of footsteps grew louder.

Mimi quietly peered around the curtain to see her best friend still fast asleep. Smiling, she walked over to the side of the bed and placed another vase filled with carnations beside the roses.

"Who are those from?" Jyou asked, coming to stand beside her.

"Hikari and Takeru." Mimi replied pleasantly. "They've come to visit almost as often as I have, and although they haven't technically gotten to meet Sora yet they wanted to send her some of these beautiful flowers. I told them Sora would appreciate it immensely." Mimi smiled as she placed a hand on Sora's forehead. "I think her fever's finally subsided."

At her best friend's touch, Sora decided that now would be the perfect time to end her charade. She slowly opened her eyes, feigning a semi conscious state, "Mimi?"

Mimi almost fell off the side of the bed at the sound of the soft voice. "SORA!!"

Sora smiled weakly before Mimi threw herself at the auburn haired young woman and hugged her tightly. "Oh my goodness Sora!! You're finally awake!! I can't tell you how worried I've been the last couple of days! My God! After the ball I was so scared that you were dead! How could you scare me like that!?! I told you that you should leave, but did you listen!?! Oooh no! So instead you give me a heart attack! I could hit you right now if I wasn't so relieved to see that you're alright!!"

Sora didn't know how to respond to Mimi's senseless rambling. One part of her wanted to hug her back and assure her that she was fine and that they could go back home and everything would be normal again. But her other side was quickly reminded of the battle and became furious with Mimi for hiding so many secrets from her and was tempted to start screaming at her. Just when she thought she was going to be torn in half by her internal argument, however, the final occupant of the room politely cleared his throat and saved Sora from having to answer to Mimi's ranting.

"Uhhh…Mimi?"

Mimi looked to the doctor as though seeing him for the first time. "Yes?"

Jyou smiled patiently at the younger woman. "Didn't you want me to examine her when she woke up?"

"Oh!" Mimi quickly scrambled off the bed to stand at the end of it, while Jyou calmly replaced Mimi at Sora's side.

"Hello Sora, my name is Jyou Kido, and I'm a doctor and a very good friend of Mimi's."

Sora smiled sweetly at him as she quickly studied him with her keen eyes. Jyou had navy colored hair that reached his shoulders, and dark intelligent eyes that were magnified by wire-rimmed glasses. He seemed very kind, but he carried with him an air of maturity and respect that Sora couldn't fathom. Coming to the conclusion that he wasn't a threat during the present situation, she took his outstretched hand and shook it. "A pleasure to meet you Doctor."

He held up a hand. "Please, call me Jyou. I've never been comfortable with formalities."

Sora smiled, "Alright Jyou." She watched curiously as Jyou reached into his coat pocket and extracted a pen.

"Sora, I want you to follow this pen with your eyes." He instructed as he began to slowly wave it in front of her face, changing directions at random intervals. Sora didn't really understand why this test was so important, but Jyou seemed pleased by her reactions and with a smile he returned the pen to his pocket. "Good. There doesn't appear to be any brain damage."

Mimi gasped, "Are you sure doctor?! I could tell you some interesting stories that would have you reclaiming that factor in an--" Mimi was silenced by Sora's pillow slamming into her face.

Jyou chuckled. "And I see her aim hasn't been affected."

"Of course it would be difficult to miss Mimi's mouth," Sora replied innocently. Jyou chuckled at this statement while Mimi glared at her friend before joining in as well. "So…..do I have you to thank for caring for me?"

Jyou looked startled. "Thank?"

"Well, if you've been taking care of me then I want to thank you."

Jyou looked remarkably pleased when she said this. "Well I did all the scientific work to get you better, but it wasn't me alone. Mimi, Mai, and a few of the others have been taking very good care of you as well……with Mimi's persistent nagging and all who _wouldn't_ rush to your aid." He added the last part under his breath and Sora giggled.

He slowly rose to his feet after running a few more minor tests and announced happily. "I believe you're going to be just fine Sora. I'd advise you to stay in bed for a couple more days as a precaution, but you're very healthy and should be able to explore to your heart's content soon. I'd love to stay, but I have other patients to check on."

Sora waved cheerfully, "Thank you Jyou."

He beamed, "You're quite welcome."

"Oh! And Jyou –"

"I know Mimi, I know. I won't breathe a word to Taichi."

Mimi smiled as she, too, waved to him as he slowly closed the door behind him.

When the doctor had left the room Mimi pounced on her best friend's bed and gave her another bone crushing hug, "Sora I'm so sorry for everything! This whole thing was my fault! Please forgive me!"

Sora blinked in surprise before hesitantly returning the hug. What was she supposed to say? "Yes of course I forgive you for keeping the majority of your life a secret!" or "Yes of course I forgive you for not telling me you were one of the Thieves, who I was raised to believe were evil!" No, no, no, none of those would work... She sighed as the only response that came to mind, and left her mouth, was, "Why did you lie to me?"

Mimi raised her head so fast that Sora winced at the thought of how much that must've hurt her upper vertebrae. She slowly removed her arms from around her friend's torso and rested them in her lap, "I didn't want to Sora…. but…. I didn't realize how horrible the noble class believed us to be ….I was scared." She averted her eyes away from Sora's and stared at the floor, "I would constantly hear about the things we'd done but they would twist our intentions from noble to dastardly. I wanted to tell you, but I was so afraid that someone would overhear… Could you imagine what would've happened? I would've been interrogated and locked away in Ichijouji castle…. Or even killed! And then what would've become of my friends? Taichi is the most wanted person alive, and the rest of us have hefty rewards being offered for our captures as well." She raised her head again, "I also didn't want you involved in the complicated part of my life…. That parts I would prefer to forget…."

Sora felt her throat constrict as guilt began to drape over her shoulders like a dark and uncomfortable cape. "Mimi…. I'll forgive you… but in return for my forgiveness… I want to know everything. Everything you've kept from me for the last few years. I think I've deemed myself trustworthy enough."

Mimi's eyes filled with tears, "You have Sora! It's me that's been untrustworthy!" She quickly wiped her lower eyelids before giving her best attempt at a normal smile, as though they were preparing to discuss something casual like how horrible the food at Ichijouji was, or how attractive the new Takenouchi knights were. "Well…. where should I begin?"

Sora smiled, "How about at the beginning. What were your parents like? Did you have any siblings?"

Mimi smiled, "My parents were good people… my mother was a seamstress, and my father was a senator in the government. We lived in a little fishing village many days from here, just the three of us, so no I didn't have any siblings." She sighed suddenly, "They're dead though…. when my parents learned of Takenouchi's surrender they organized a resistance group, but Ichijouji killed them all and burned our village to the ground."

Sora's eyes widened, "The King killed them all!?!"

Mimi nodded slowly, "Then took the remaining people, mostly the kids of the village like myself, and brought us here to Ichijouji to work at the palace. We were slaves; nothing more than property being traded in for money. For a long time I was unhappy and scared all the time…" her forlorn look suddenly grew a brighter, happier, "but then I met Taichi and Hikari."

TTTTTTTTTTTT

Henry clasped his hands behind his back and sighed dramatically, _I don't see how people can actually do this for a living._

He was currently standing in one of the Ichijouji watch towers that surrounded the castle, the only one that had been abandoned due to...hm hm..._ghosts_.

Henry smiled at the fond memory. Taichi had ordered him to find some sort of place where he could safely spy on the enemy, he didn't say where, and Henry already had the perfect place in mind; Stretching about four floors into the sky, there were eight towers stationed around Ichijouji castle at odd intervals where a small team of archers and watchmen took shifts in order to keep an eye out for escaping slaves or criminals, riots, and other disturbances. Their positions were perfect to watch the city... but they were also perfect for spies, like Henry, to keep an eye on the soldiers, nobility, and even the Prince and King. So, naturally, Henry wanted one of these large-scale advantages on their side.

With the location chosen, Henry only had to figure out a way to make the soldiers reluctant to take their shifts there and an idea didn't take long to hatch into his devious mind.

Accompanied by Takato, Ryo, and Rika, he had climbed into the cone-like roof while his partners in crime hid in nearby rooms with open windows and all four of them made loud, agonizing moans and groans. With the occasional "magical movement of objects", and a tap on the shoulder or a shove of the leg with seemingly no one around, it didn't take long for the Ichijouji men to be shaken so badly that they refused to set foot in the watch tower on account of evil spirits haunting the place.

Henry chuckled. They were evil all right, but the farthest thing from spirits.

And as an added bonus, Ken knew nothing about this abandoned post on account of the soldiers not wanting to be dubbed "cowardice", so it gave Henry all the leisure time he needed to do what he did best.

He leaned over the side of the guard tower and watched all the people scurry around like roaches. That's all this city could be compared to; a roach's nest. Nothing but greedy merchants and nobles sucking the life from anything and everything they could get their dirty hands on. He grimaced at the vivid image that was produced in his mind, and it was with this comparison that he realized just how bored he was at that moment.

Eager for a distraction, he began glancing around, listening to every conversation that was loud enough for him to overhear.

_**"Oh my GOODNESS!! Did you hear about that guy that was just knighted! Talk about handsome!!!"**_

Henry resisted the temptation the hit his head against the wooden fence surrounding the edge of the tower. _Ooookay, gossiping noble women wasn't exactly what I had in mind... Next_.

_**"That damn Prince of Thieves. I'm still stepping on glass in the ballroom!"**_

_**"You think you've got it bad? At least you don't have to be in the presence of the pissed off King. He almost decapitated me last night with his wine glass!"**_

Henry rolled his eyes. _His wine glass? Oh yea, that's something people should be bragging about. If that's the highlight of someone's week they should keep that pitying factor to themselves. Next._

_"__**Give me a break! I cleaned the kitchens last week!"**_

_**"Oh come on! Can't you cover for me tonight! Pleeease!!"**_

Ken sighed dramatically once again and slumped over the fence._ Is this the fate of talented spies like myself? Listening to palace gossip and average conversations? If so, then I might have to finally take up Taichi's offer and officially join the_ -- Henry's keen ears suddenly picked up the familiar sounds of people scaling the ladder to his present location. Eyes widening somewhat at the sudden appearance of enemies, he lept into the inside of the roof, gripping the self-made foot and hand holes he had dug out for just such an occasion. He inwardly growled at the predicament he found himself in; his arms were stretched above him as he gripped the hand holes on either side of his head, his heels were plowed into foot holes at odd angles since the roof was rounded. Needless to say he was extremely uncomfortable and swore to make whoever was dumb enough to disturb him pay dearly for placing him in such an embarrassing situation.

"I don't understand why you have to discuss this here Myotis."

Henry's breath caught in his throat. He quickly took back that last statement and replaced it with a silent "Thank you God!" He didn't have to look down to figure out who the two new occupants of the tower were; there was no other voice comparable to General Pied's silky, chilling voice.

"Other than the Prince's room this is the only place people choose to avoid. They treat this place as though it's contaminated with the plague."

Pied scoffed. "That still doesn't explain why you dragged me up here."

Myotis glared at his unwilling companion before taking a seat against one of the support beams that connected the roof to the rest of the tower, "Isn't it obvious Pied? Or are you so dense that you can't figure out what needs to be discussed without the rest of the castle's knowledge?"

Pied crossed his arms over his chest and glared daggers at his hated rival, "Obviously it is about the subject brought up by the Prince, but my question remains why you wish to discuss it without his majesty's presence...unless you are planning something devious Commander."

Myotis chuckled, "You give your half-witted ideas far too much credit General." Pied's eyes darkened at this jest, but before he could retaliate Myotis continued, "You see, General, like it or not we are now accomplices in the Prince's game against the Prince of Thieves, and I fear that if we do not come up with a fool proof plan that will hand over Ichijouji's most famous little runaway to the Prince we will be the ones to suffer the consequences."

"I have been contemplating the same idea myself," Pied admitted. "We must learn everything we can about this nuisance and devise a plan that will deliver him and his comrades to their doom. Any ideas?"

Myotis scanned their surroundings with his ice blue eyes, "Perhaps we could kidnap one of the ones we already know the identities of to gain knowledge of their location and take them by surprise."

Pied smirked, "_Brilliant_ Myotis, _Bravo_! The only tiny flaw in your plan is that those very few whose identities are known to the kingdom happen to be those most fiercely loyal to the Prince of Thieves. We could torture them, mutilate them, hell, we could threaten them with death and I assure you they will remain as tight lipped as ever."

Myotis narrowed his eyes sufficiently; "Well what would you propose we do to coax them out of hiding? In order for his majesty's plan to work the Thieves must appear in the correct location, otherwise --"

"Ssh!" Pied ordered, his index finger drawn to his lips. He glanced around suspiciously, "The walls have ears General, I suggest we discuss this further in a safer location."

Myotis glanced around as well, scanning each window before landing on the one where he was just able to catch the fleeting image of someone ducking around the edge of the window. "Hmmm...Perhaps that would be best."

_No damnit! _Henry cursed. He knew a valuable piece of information when he heard it, and judging by these two powerful figures' caution this was something big..._ huge_ even.

"I will, however, leave you with this thought Myotis. Perhaps even your miniscule brain can comprehend the influence this action might have on the people." Myotis narrowed his eyes but didn't interrupt. "Center your focus on the Takenouchi girl. I've heard the people are quite fond of her, and with her in the possession of the Thieves..." he paused to chuckle, "I'm sure the civilians' favor in the runaway will plummet."

Henry's eyes widened. _So_ that's _their plan...they want the city to go up against Taichi, and, in consequence, the rebellion. Clever..._

Pied smirked as he bowed mockingly in the direction of the General. "It was a pleasure wasting my time with you General. I'm afraid I will probably have to see you again tonight, so without further adue' I shall take my leave." With that said he spun around and climbed down the ladder.

Myotis remained where he was, much to Henry's dismay. When the Commander was out of sight Myotis smirked as he withdrew an old, faded scroll. He carefully unfolded it, revealing a letter written in elegant, however rushed looking, letters. He read over the text for the millionth time since receiving it and a cruel smile formed on his lips.

Henry scowled; he was far too high above Myotis to be able to read the words that were causing him so much happiness. He leaned his face as far down as possible in his current position and was able to catch the first few words;

_**"Myotis,**_

_**I have agreed to your terms. You have my services as long as" --**_

Henry felt his foot slip and a small cloud of dust and tile particles rained down from the roof, colliding with the floor with the quiet sound of soft footsteps. Myotis, startled by the sudden sound, immediately rolled up the parchment and stuck it back into his vest, then glanced at the ground and narrowed his eyes with suspicion. He walked towards the small pile of debris and picked up some of the dust between his fingers. After studying the sand-like particles, he flicked the gray substance off the leather of his gloves and turned his attention towards the roof...but there was nothing there.

Scowling, he rose to his feet and left the watchtower, completely unaware of the young man standing on top of the roof watching him, the way a predator might watch his prey... with hunger. At that moment Henry vowed to learn what was written on the parchment, because whatever it was, according to his gut feeling, was destined to cost the lives of his friends and he wouldn't allow that.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Mimi grinned broadly, "Taichi, as I've told you many times before, is my best friend, and Hikari is like my little sister. The three of us were inseparable upon meeting."

"How did you meet them in the first place?" Sora questioned.

"Let's see... well, they had been at the castle about a month prior to my arrival, but in that short amount of time they learned so much about their surroundings. I, of course, was lost and confused for my first few weeks as a slave, but I was also taunted and abused by other slaves and the soldiers. I was a scapegoat; the person always blamed when things went wrong due solely to the fact that my parents were traitors. But, ironically, if it weren't for those bastards I wouldn't have become acquainted with Taichi.

"The slaves were all squeezed into a single, tiny room without beds or proper clothes. We were, however, presented with a dusty mat and rags, and I had just settled mine into a secluded corner and started to fall asleep when a soldier suddenly burst into the room.

"He was screaming about how one of us filthy slaves stole food out of the Ichijouji's kitchens, and, of course, I was blamed by everyone in the room, everyone, that is, except Taichi and Hikari, and was ordered to receive twenty lashes. I was so terrified that I started to cry, and that's when Taichi stepped in, he told the guard that he had stolen the food and took the punishment for me." Mimi smiled and wiped her eyes, "It was the first and last time I had ever seen his back without those horrible scars..." It took Mimi several moments to regain her composure before continuing, "Taichi was well-liked amongst the other slaves, he gave them hope that things would get better, and when he took the punishment for me and we all had to watch him go through that...and then when it was finished and he asked me if _I _was alright...well, we became best friends after that.

"We were always getting into trouble, the three of us. We had so much fun together, and, if I recall correctly, that was around the time we met Yamato and Takeru."

"So you knew Taichi first?"

Mimi nodded, "Yep, I've known him almost a year longer than Yamato, but as soon as he saved Taichi and Hikari he was easy to welcome into our group of troublemakers.

"Hikari had developed a cough one evening, but a cough could turn into something serious in the living conditions we were forced to stay in, so Taichi said he was going to steal a blanket and some food to help her get better. Sadly, though, he was caught. The guards cornered him in a hallway while I was in the kitchens, but, because Taichi loves Hikari so much, he wasn't about to give up easily. He lost of course; these guys were three times his size and armed with all sorts of weapons, so Taichi got pretty beat up during his attempted escape. Yamato had been watching everything in secret and when he overheard Taichi mention his little sister Yamato decided to help. He stole the blanket from the guards and allowed Taichi a chance to escape and get another one. Yamato received thirty lashes that night, but he and Takeru, his little brother, gained three new friends as well."

Sora smiled, "So did he ever regret his decision?"

"Never," Mimi stated without hesitation. "None of us have." Suddenly her eyes darkened, "Well, actually...we did...once. Ken and the King realized how close we had become and decided to separate us in order to make sure we couldn't plot anything against them. If we disobeyed them they would threaten to hurt the other four." She sighed, "Hikari, Takeru, and myself weren't treated too horribly, but Yamato and Taichi...," she shook her head.

"It all started on a normal day; Taichi, once again, found himself in gigantic trouble. I swear he's accident prone or something," she laughed half-heartedly. "Anyway, the guards were pretty much fed up with him at this point and decided no slave was worth the trouble he was causing, so they planned to kill him."

Sora's eyes widened at this announcement, "They were going to kill him!?!"

"This was during the King's golden era, before he got sick, and he was as ruthless as ever. He killed and tortured his slaves simply for entertainment, and the three of us were no exception. So the guards took him to see the King to get approval, but...something happened. The King saw something in Taichi and instantly ordered the five of us to be separated."

Sora blinked in confusion, "What did he see?"

Mimi averted her eyes, "I'm sorry Sor, I can't tell you..."

Sora's eyes narrowed and she was about to yell some very nasty insults at her friend when Mimi raised her hand, "It isn't my decision to make. Taichi doesn't want people to know anything about his past. He is the only one authorized to speak about what happened to him in that God damned castle, and I'm not going to betray his trust any more than I would intentionally betray yours."

Sora looked like she wanted to protest, but after taking a deep breath she grudgingly accepted the fact that Mimi wasn't going to budge in this decision. "Fine. So what happened next?"

"A lot, but, again, most of it is what happened to Taichi. My part during this part of our lives was pretty simple; I was a maid for the upper areas of the castle. I got to see Hikari occasionally, but that was about the most excitement I had until we escaped."

"You escaped!" Sora exclaimed.

Mimi beamed, "The only group to ever do so. From there we pretty much jumped from home to home until creating our home base. I stayed there for several years before moving to Takenouchi and meeting you."

Sora nodded slowly, drinking in Mimi's story with relative ease. She had expected something like this, it wasn't normal for a poor peasant girl from Ichijouji to know etiquette the way Mimi did. Her second guess would've been that she was a long lost princess from some vanquished land, so Mimi's explanation was much easier to swallow. It also explained her deep resentment towards Ken, hell, who_ wouldn't _be pissed after what he did to her and her friends?

"So... are we...friends again?" Mimi asked tentively, tugging on the sleeve of her shirt out of nervousness.

Sora stared at her best friend. Mimi had basically redeemed herself by telling her everything ...but did that make up for lying to her in the first place? Was this fight really worth losing their friendship over? The answer came to her slowly but surely, and a smile became apparent on her delicate lips, "Meems, we never _stopped_ being friends."

Mimi smiled widely and her eyes began to well up with tears again. Sora rolled her eyes, "Oh God Meems, does everything make you cry?"

Mimi's voice began shaking from her silent sobs during mid-giggle, and she hugged the auburn haired teenager again this time with Sora returning the hug eagerly.

"Ummm... sorry to interrupt this little love fest."

The two young women turned towards the door and both smiled, "Hey Yamato."

"Good to see you awake Sora." Yamato said smiling. He briskly strode across the room before draping an arm around his girlfriend, "Would you mind if I stole her for a while?"

Mimi gave him a confused look, "Why?"

"We've got a problem," Yamato whispered.

Mimi nodded and carefully rose off of Sora's bed, "I'm sorry Sora, but this sounds important. I'll be back in a little bit, but if you need anything you're welcome to walk around."

"Alright." Sora said calmly.

Mimi and Yamato turned around and walked out of the room, leaving Sora alone once more.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

_Darkness. Loneliness. Two of the horrible emotions he was so accustomed to these days. _

_Fear causing his eyes to clench shut as his arms were tied above him and his shirt was torn off. _

_Hopelessness enveloped him as quick, sharp pains crashed against his back, tearing his skin apart and allowing blood to ooze from the wounds._

_Two deafening cackles of pure evil invaded his senses and, through blurred vision he looked up at the silhouetted figures standing above him. One was shorter, a little taller than his height, and his laugh was a slightly higher octave. _

_The higher of the voices began speaking, but he didn't listen, he never listened. That's why he was here wasn't it? It was his fault...everything was his fault..._

_"Hm, hm. So what, _pray tell_, is finally causing you to break?" _

_He looked at the larger of the two. Despite him being so much smaller than the man who was addressing him, with his eyes so furious and his face covered with dirt and blood, he was definitely a demon in the older man's sight. _

_He chuckled again. "I suppose you're not _quite_ broken yet, but give or take a year or two," he grabbed the beaten child by his chin before lifting his face to meet his eyes. "I'd say that fire in your eyes will be__** dead**__." He slammed the boy into the wall, the back of his head ricocheting off the stones. His smile turned menacing as he watched pain flash across his face, the only thing that would've made that moment sweeter would've been to hear some sort of reaction the orphan's tight-lipped mouth. _

_The man turned to the smaller figure before exchanging a few unimportant words. The smaller figure nodded eagerly before walking over to his _almost_ broken toy. For a moment both their eyes met in a quick exchange of sadness, before the son of the man raised his blade and struck the defenseless younger boy in the chest directly below his collar bone. _

_He didn't scream, he didn't cry out, he wouldn't give either of them the horrible satisfaction. Slowly the blade was dragged through his flesh...slowly forming letters. _

_The boy stared at him, eyes wide and pleading. _

_But he didn't stop, he blocked out the looks the younger boy was giving him._

_"S"_

_That was the first letter to be scarred on him. _

_He tried to free himself, struggling against the man's hold, but the man ceased his violent twisting and turning by placing a large, heavy hand against his rib cage. "You brought this on yourself kid, at least try to take it like a man and not like the street scum you were born to be." _

_"L" _

_The next letter. _

_The boy tried once more to reach out to other boy, whose hands were shaking as he continued to dig the knife deeper into his skin. "Please Ken!"_

_The other boy paused, unaccustomed to hearing anything from his subject's mouth during torture sessions. He looked up, meeting the hurt and saddened eyes of the one whom he was betraying. He steeled his eyes before digging the knife up to the hilt into his flesh, causing a satisfactory gasp to escape the boy's lips. "That's _Master_ to you street rat!"_

Taichi's eyes flew open at the recollection of the horrible memory. His hand instinctively flew toward his collar bone, praying against reality that the marks weren't there...that the dream had been just that; a dream. No such luck however, Taichi realized as he traced the letters with his index finger. He shut his eyes tightly and allowed his head to fall back into the pillow, the words of the memory still echoing around in his head.

_...His fault..._

_Break.._

_...Your eyes will be dead... Street Scum..._

_Please Ken..._

_...That's Master...Street Rat..._

Taichi's eyes flew open once again as he tried to fight against the tantalizing voices, but still they penetrated his mind's defenses. He didn't understand! Why were these memories coming back!?! He hadn't thought about them in years, so what had suddenly triggered them? He shut his eyes again to try and recall what had happened before his injuries, but, to his fury, he came up empty handed once again.

_I bet it makes you wish you were never born..._

Taichi blinked at the foreign voice that entered his head.

_Think of all the lives spent so that your sorry excuse for a soul could live on_

"Damnit!" he whispered angrily as he pulled the pillow from beneath his head and slammed it over his head. Why couldn't he remember any of this! Why did these statements sound so familiar but he couldn't pinpoint when he'd heard them!

One word: Amnesia

Jyou had informed him of this minor case when Taichi had awoken without remembering how he attained all his injuries. He knew where he was and who he and the other occupants of the room were, so Jyou assured him it wasn't a serious condition, but he could only remember bits and pieces before his awakening; He remembered all the events leading up to the attack on Ken during his return trip, he could vaguely recall his stay in the Ichijouji dungeons, and a few scenes of his time spent at the ball could be identified...but after that...

He shook his head angrily. He was staring at a painting that was blurred and faded and he was trying to figure out what was happening with the few pieces that weren't contaminated. He was trying to figure out a puzzle when he only had a handful of pieces, he had a chest without a key, a door without a handle, a story without the middle section. The more he tried to focus on these missing pieces the more frustrated and angry he became; he was looking directly at the lost pieces of his mind, but he wasn't _seeing_ them and it was driving him mad.

He pushed the limits of his mental capacity and realized that the last thing he remembered involved a girl he met at the ball. She was from Takenouchi, that much he was certain of, and she had a very high status...like the princess or something. He had spent a great deal of time with her and, contrary to most of his undercover missions where other nobles were involved, he had enjoyed himself whilst in her company. Completely unlike the mendacious females he was usually introduced to at these extravagant parties, the girl -- Sora, he believed her name to be -- was...different. Fun maybe? Exciting?

Well, regardless to what he thought about her, she was involved in the last memories he had, so, consequently, he had been thinking about her a lot as he tried to breach the protective walls his subconscious had set up to block him from whatever happened afterward. Unfortunately these walls had a few cracks in them and these damn voices would pester him during the most unexpected times.

Taichi sighed as he threw his pillow off his face with his good arm and sent it sailing across the room. He hated this place.

He was very grateful to Mai and the other members of the Coventry for allowing him to stay...but he could only take so much of this place before getting restless. He had never been one to stay in the same place longer than necessary. He craved adventure. He needed it the same way people required air. But with these godforsaken wounds Jyou told him he was forbidden to leave his bed.

Taichi smirked as he reached under his bed and pulled a shirt from the spotless floor beneath his mattress.

But what kind of thief would he be if he actually _followed_ rules?

After carefully placing his shirt over his head and placing his broken arm into a makeshift sling he created he quietly placed his feet on the floor, only to draw them back just as quickly. The floor was freezing!

He groaned, but his need to leave the infirmary was greater than his reluctance to replace his feet on the icy wood flooring. Bracing himself he jumped off the bed and silently left the infirmary.

The corridors were dark -- no, correction, the corridors were pitch black. He was sure even if he lit a candle the comforting flame wouldn't be able to pierce the blackness. But despite the fear-inspiring scene Taichi's steps didn't falter. His destination was in mind, and he knew this place better than most of the nuns did.

After taking several turns and walking down numerous hallways Taichi finally came to a large door with brass handles. He rested his hand on the wood for a moment before shoving it open, instantly being greeted by a rush of icy air.

It was a large courtyard tucked within the other large buildings of the Coventry, but this courtyard held a more significant meaning to our young hero.

It was a full moon that night, giving the courtyard an ethereal glow that would've given anyone new to the scene goosebumps. A lone tree was standing near the center; its dead leaves were blowing in the cold breeze. Dotted here and there were stone benches, a few of them broken. But the most eye catching piece in the courtyard was a large rounded piece of marble that was situated on a little island in the center of a pond, located beside the tree.

Taichi walked down the small number of steps before his feet touched the damp grass, a small smile on his face. He crossed the browning grasses without much thought, his eyes set on the marble stone several yards away. The autumn air was so cold his breath clouded before him, lingering around his face for a moment before vanishing into the wind. He hated this time of year; too early for it to start snowing, but past summer. Autumn was the time that everything died, he was much more comfortable during spring and summer. But, as Taichi was all too accustomed with, death was inevitable...whether it was through natural causes...or murder.

He had crossed the stepping stones leading to the stone. White and black Koi fish swam around him and he glanced at them, gracing them with a small smile, before kneeling before the stone.

Polished to a glossy radiance, it reflected the glow of the moon just enough for the words carved into the marble to be readable.

**Memorial of the Unshackled**

_Here we rest our loved ones passed_

_Those tainted by the evil cast,_

_We pray their sufferings come to rest_

_Amongst the angels, golden and blessed._

_Although they've left their final fight_

_May they come back to keep us in their sight._

_On gold and silver wings they fly,_

_their joyous laughter echoing through the sky._

_We know their demise was brought by He,_

_But at least we mortals now know they're free._

_**R.I.P. Victims of the Dark Reign**_

Taichi stared at the words for a long time.

He didn't need to read the beautifully written letters any more than a composer would have to look over his most famous piece; the words were permanently burned into his mind.

He took a deep breath of the evening air before placing his hand on the grave. Almost instantly a smile was brought to his face. He almost felt connected to them somehow...he could almost hear his father's laugh, almost see his mother's eyes, eyes that were so much like his own. He almost laughed aloud when he heard -- _almost_ heard -- his old mentor lecturing him about never giving up, especially if it involved something as important as the last piece of chocolate cake at a buffet.

He leaned his forehead against the cool marble, contrasting sharply with his fever.

So many people..._so_ _many_ people he knew and loved had this memorial as a final resting place.

_Think of all the lives spent so that your sorry excuse for a soul could live on_

Taichi clenched his eyes shut, "It's not true is it?"

_I bet it makes you wish you were never born..._

"Is it really my fault that so many people died?"

The sound of the wind howled around him, blowing his hair around wildly.

He received no reply...not that he expected one.

"I'm supposed to be a hero, right?" he laughed dryly, "Have all heroes killed as many as I have? Have all heroes crossed over to darkness at one point or another?" He paused for a long time, "Or am I not a hero at all..." He opened his eyes again and stared at his bandaged hands, "Am I the demon everyone says I am? Some sort of hellish creature trying to make up for all the horrible things I've done..."

The wind suddenly died to a soft breeze, brushing past his face with the tenderness of soft hands.

He clenched his hands and laughed in that same half-humored manner again, "An angel?" He looked at the grave again, "There's no place where you are for people like me."

The wind picked up again.

"Killing innocent people isn't forgivable." he yelled over the wind, and slowly the roaring calmed again. "Everything has a purpose...you told me this a long time ago...and for a long time my purpose involved ending the lives of others." He smiled grimly, "but I'm changing that fate. I vow to stop Ken and make your sacrifices worth while...or die trying." He smirked as he rose to his feet, ignoring the pain that stabbed through his chest from his ribs, "So you think a devil can grow wings?" He turned to stare at the moon, the wind began to pick up again, "Well, if that's possible, I'm crazy enough to try it."

Two leaves settled on the top of the tombstone, one gold, one red, before the winter air swept them up and carried them off into the night.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

"Is it REALLY possible to be bored after being abducted against your will by the most notorious gang in Ichijouji?!" Sora hissed angrily as she ended up in yet another unfamiliar corridor. She sighed with a heavy dose of exasperation. She had been wandering around the Coventry since dawn trying to find a kitchen where she could get something to eat. Unfortunately this was about three hours ago.

She walked down the corridor at a leisurely pace, eyes scanning each door she passed. Any one of those doors could hold what she was looking for, she realized, so, with the final thought of "_What have I got to lose_" crossing her mind, she chose the next door on her right and turned the doorknob.

She peered in and saw a small dark room filled with candles and essence. Sighing, she closed the door and went to the next one.

She continued this way for about twelve more doors before getting frustrated. _Okay, I'll try one more door_. she told herself. She glanced at all her choices, pointing at each one while saying a little rhyme in her head. She moved towards one on her left a few doors down, she stretched her hand out to take the doorknob in her hand, but something stopped her.

_**CRASH!!**_

Sora spun around to face the door opposite of her. "What the --" She glanced around before advancing towards the direction the crash came from. She leaned towards the room, pressing her ear against the door.

"Oh crap! Hikari's going to kill me!"

Sora blinked in confusion, but didn't have long to contemplate what it was she was hearing because the next moment she felt her support leaving her and she came rushing to meet the floor. She braced herself for the impact...but it never came. She opened her eyes and turned her gaze upward only to experience a strong case of deja vu as she laid eyes on the person that broke her fall.

"Whoa! Are you okay?"

Sora jumped up and brushed herself off. "I'm fine, thanks."

"Good." he beamed. Sora noticed how bright his smile was and once again was reminded of someone she met at the ball. "Sorry about that, by the way, I didn't know you were leaning against the door... wait why _were_ you leaning against the door anyway?"

Sora blushed from embarrassment, "I heard something, but I didn't want to just barge in. Sorry about that -- ummm..."

"Daisuke."

Sora found herself staring at him with wide eyes. Okay, THIS was WAY too much of a coincidence. "Wait, your name is Daisuke?!?"

Daisuke's smile faltered a bit, "Umm...last time I checked."

"Were you at the Ichijouji's ball?"

Daisuke smiled again, "Yep."

_This can't -- He can't be -- deep breaths Sora. _She shook her head slightly and examined her new acquaintance a little closer. _There's no way he could be THAT Daisuke. He's too young, and although they look alike there are still too many differences for them to be the same person._

"Ummm...are you okay?"

Sora snapped out of her thoughts and flashed her own smile in his direction, "I'm sorry, I met someone at the ball named Daisuke and for a second I thought you were him."

Daisuke grinned, "Nah, it couldn't have been me! There's no way he could be as devilishly handsome as I --"

"DAISUKE!!"

In the time it took for Sora to turn towards the owner of the new voice, Daisuke was hiding safely behind her, muttering curses under his breath. Sora glanced from the cowering younger boy to the fuming girl standing in front of her. The girl was very pretty with short, light brown hair and lovely brown eyes. Her attire, Sora commended, did NOT include a skirt or dress of any kind.

Daisuke nervously fidgeted behind Sora before coming to the conclusion that feigning innocence would be the best option to get himself out of this mess. "Umm...Hi Hikari!" he greeted, still using Sora as a human shield.

Hikari stormed over to the two, placing her hands firmly on her hips as her light brown eyes danced with fury. "Don't act innocent Davis. Consider yourself lucky you're not lying unconscious right now!"

Daisuke ducked lower behind Sora, hiding his face from view of the angry brunette. _Okay, so that didn't work...maybe I should just stay quiet...YEA! That's it! Maybe she'll forget about me thanks to Sora!_

Hikari gave the top of his head one more furious glare before noticing Sora's presence. "Oh! Forgive me for that outburst, you're Mimi's friend right? Sora?"

Sora wasn't sure how to respond to this young woman's question, mainly due to the fact that Mimi hadn't spared any information in her _detailed_ stories about her, so she simply smiled uncertainly.

Hikari's smile seemed to light up the entire room. "Wow. I can't tell you how wonderful it is to finally meet you. I feel like I already know you thanks to Mimi's letters." Hikari continued conversing with her pleasantly, keeping an eye locked on Daisuke. "I hear you're very talented with swords Sora."

"I love swords." Sora said smiling, pleased that they were discussing a topic Sora was so familiar with.

Hikari's smile transformed into a smirk at Sora's confession. "Well, you'll fit in famously around here then. We're all a little weapon crazed...something that troubles me at times." Sora couldn't help but smile at the sound of HIkari's laugh at the end of her sentence. "DAISUKE DON'T MOVE!"

Sora glanced behind her to see Daisuke in a position ready to sprint down the hallway. Now that Sora had seen a small portion of Hikari's personality she realized Daisuke must've done something pretty bad to make the younger girl so angry.

Hikari smiled apologetically in Sora's direction, "I'm sorry Sora, but would you mind if I spoke to Daisuke in private for a moment?"

"Not at all." Sora said calmly.

Hikari smiled, "Thank you. If you want, you can go in there," she motioned to the door Sora was standing in front of. "I've got a bunch of my paintings in there."

Sora was intrigued by this, "You paint?"

Hikari beamed, "Yep."

Sora smiled as she turned around and walked into the room, but when she did she felt her breath constrict in her throat. The room was stunning! The room itself was quite plain, no furniture or spectacular windows...but the paintings! They were gorgeous!

There was one of Ichijouji market street on a busy weekday morning that was so perfectly drawn it felt as if Sora could walk through the portrait and end up on the destination drawn. There was another of a brilliant sunrise occurring on a grassy hill covered in yellow flowers, but the majority of the paintings were those of people.

The first one that caught her eye had a group of seven kids displayed, laughing and smiling with one another. As she inspected it closer she recognized several of the figures; Mimi, Jyou, Yamato, and who she presumed to be Hikari. They looked younger, and Sora realized this must have been painted before Mimi left for Takenouchi. She studied the other unfamiliar faces; there was a younger girl with short brown hair and sparkling brown eyes next to Mimi, and, upon further inspection, Sora realized it _was_ the artist Hikari, standing next to Jyou was a boy with striking red hair and intelligent dark eyes, there was another younger boy on the other side of Hikari with blonde hair and a shy smile on his face, and finally there was a boy that Yamato had wrapped an arm around his shoulders, he had spiky brown hair and eyes that practically radiated the happiness he must've felt.

She glanced around and realized this particular boy was in many of the portraits, including one where he and Hikari were wrapped in a hug, smiling in her direction. As she stared into the still face she couldn't help but feel a wave of recognition wash over her...she knew him...

"I like that one too."

Sora jumped, spinning around in the air only to come face to face with Hikari. "You startled me."

Hikari grinned, "I noticed." Her eyes went back to the portrait and suddenly there was worry evident within her eyes. "That's my brother. He was injured during the raid...injured severely."

Sora looked at her, then back at the portrait, "I'm sorry."

Hikari's mood did a complete 180 and she was smiling brightly once again, "He'll be fine. He always is, after all." She began walking towards a pile of broken glass on the floor, her brows narrowing, "This was a vase I made...how did it --"

"Hey Hikari! Don't you think Sora would like something to eat!?!" Daisuke suddenly ran inside and jumped in front of the brunette girl to block her view of the broken vase.

Hikari turned her eyes away from the broken vase and looked to Sora with a shocked expression, "Sora have you eaten anything recently?"

Sora blinked as though the idea of food hadn't even occurred to her. "No, I haven't."

"You must be starving!" Hikari exclaimed. "Come with us, we'll take you to the kitchens."

Sora grinned, "Thank you! I've been trying to find the kitchens for hours!"

"Well it's a good thing we showed up then!" Daisuke announced as he practically ran out of the room, grasping Hikari's wrist and dragging her with him. Sora giggled as she rushed to catch up.

"Hey Daisuke do you know why my vase is broken?"

"Nope! No idea! Hehe, now who's hungry!! I know I am!!"

Sora and Hikari glanced at each other with raised eyebrows, then proceeded to laugh at the flustered, nervous boy.

"I'll get him back later," Hikari whispered to her.

Sora laughed in reply, she had a feeling she was going to get along with these two.

After a few minutes of joking and laughing with the duo -- Sora was shocked at how easily she got along with them -- they came to a large wooden door.

"Sora, this courtyard leads to all the major parts of the Coventry. If you learn the different passageways from this place, you'll never get lost again." Hikari smiled, "Well...unless you're like Davis over here."

Daisuke narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest, "I have a bad sense of direction!"

Hikari giggled, "Is that really the best defensive argument Davis?"

Daisuke rolled his eyes as he threw open the door and walked into the courtyard.

Sora smiled, "Do you always pick on him?"

"Yep," she grinned, "I guess you could call it a hobby of mine."

The girls entered the courtyard laughing but as they continued walking through the enclosure, Sora's laughter came to an abrupt halt as she took in her surroundings. A carpet of browning grasses covered in a blanket of multi-colored leaves was what her eyes began drinking. Takenouchi's leaves didn't turn such vibrant shades of golds, reds, and oranges. They would turn brown, shrivel up, then die, so for her eyes this was a glorious sight indeed, and she was slowly becoming drunk on the spicy sent in the air.

A tree, nearly bare of all its leaves, was located in the center with a small pond and a marble stone beside it. She was so absorbed in the beautiful surroundings that she didn't notice Hikari had stopped in front of her.

She crashed into her new friend's back, creating a domino effect where Hikari toppled into Daisuke and the duo crashed into the ground. Sora, whose klutzy nature was once again showing due strongly to the fact that she was still wearing those horrible heels of her's, fell to the side instead. She sighed when she felt something cushion her fall.

"OUCH!"

Or maybe some_one_.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

me: YAY!!! Another chappie done!!! HOPE YOU ALL ENJOYED IT!!! Heehee! ANOTHER CLIFFY!! MUWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! No worries everyone! I'll have some Taiora soon !! YaY TAIORANESS!!! haha. Well, I promise to have the next update posted as soon as possible!! Hopefully before Christmas!

Well, REVIEW PLZ!!! Or I'll sick Myotismon on ya!! MUWAHAHAHAHA!!! haha, LATERZ DUDES!!!!

**CS**

_ IF YOU WANNA KNOW!! _

1.**Vamde Myotis** is a name I made up from Myotismon's Japanese and English names put together

2. **Pierro Pied** is also a name I made up. Pierro is taken directly from Pierrot (which is what he is) and Pied is just Piedmon without the mon

3. **Yutaka** is Tommy's infamous older brother from Digimon Frontier, the Japanese version doesn't give him a name, but in the English version they gave him the name Yutaka, which is an acronym for Takuya

4. I created **Mrs. Mokobon's** (you'll see her in later chapters) name by rearranging the letters in Bokomon (season 04)


	8. Backstabbing

me: 'ELLO 'ELLO

**me**: 'ELLO 'ELLO!! Wow, sorry for the extremely LOOOONG wait guys! I know I know, I'm a terrible person that should be set on fire, I've given myself the guilt trip already, haha. But this semester has been extremely hectic since the school district messed up my ENTIRE schedule (rolls eyes) So yea... getting used to it has been a pain.

BUT!! like the last chapter, I have so many awseome ideas that I want to put into this story that the chapters will probably continue being long, YAY FOR YOU!! haha.

Anywayz! GUESS WHAT!! Since today's my 16th b-day!! (I know, I'm street legal, is that scary or what) This chapter is a birthday present from me to you!!... on _MY_ b-day!! ...strange... haha.

And it's got all the stuff you've been anxiously awaiting!! ... well... most of it anyway, haha. And the ending's gonna be a shocker!! YAY!!

**My Quote of the month!!: **

_"I realize I live in a fantasy world... but I've also come to the realization that not everyone lives there with me." -- Me. _

**ALL OF MY ABSOLUTELY AMAZING REVIEWERS!! (you all get a free toaster!! WITH the toast!! how special do you feel now?)**

**Crazy with Happiness: **

**lil-lilac86:**

**l'ange-de-fue**

**BandGeek99:**

**AngelSachiya:**

**bw1080:** _(in wise guru voice) I AM honored, oh thank you amazing reviewer bw1080. (bows) WHOOHOO!! Sry, I've been wanting to do that to someone FOREVER!! haha. YAY NINJAS!! anywayz, all of your guesses have the potential to be correct, I won't say you're wrong... but are you right?? Muwahahaha!! The world may never know!! ...until a later chapter!! _

**M M Forever**

**nomigid: **_I will never stop. So don't die. haha _

**Dragonfire411**

**kragin: **_Thank you, thank you, thank you very much! (claps)_

**Super garurumon: **_(squeals) I found a YaYing Buddy!! YAY!!_

I think I responded to everyone... if not then you have permission to throw this fuzzy yellow phone at me in your reviews. (waves fuzzy yellow phone) YAY RANDOMNESS!! Doesn't THIS make you want to review more! I know if I got to throw a fuzzy yellow phone at someone I'd totally review!! haha.

Well, ENJOY!! (gets hit in head in fuzzy yellow phone) DAVIS!! YOU'RE NOT A REVIEWER!! YOU DON'T COUNT!!

TTTTTTTTTTT

**_last time:_**_ Hey everyone! Mimi here! Well, the King has gone a little out of his mind since we crashed his ball, he's started these horrible curfews and ordered his elite Black Squadron to hunt us down. Ken has decided to team up with the Black Squadron's head Myotis and Commander Pied to form a plan to caputre Taichi, but, knowing those two it shouldn't be too much of a threat, haha. Taichi is another story ... he's not recovering and it's beginning to worry us. He keeps complaining that the Coventry is like a prison, but it's for his own good and he needs to understand that! Which is exactly why Yamato and I have decided to not inform him about Sora staying with us or anything else that's happening outside. He'll just want to go and fix everything... and with his injuries it might cost him his life. But I have told Sora everything I feel obligated to tell her, but now Jeri's stumbled upon some troubling news and Henry has this new obsession to find out something Myotis had in writing. Man, can our lives get any MORE hectic?_

TTTTTTTTTTT

A gentleman of noble standards whistled a happy tune as he walked down the tidy streets of the First District. Here and there a cart of fresh fruit or other vendors of expensive luxuries like flowers and chocolate were being sold. It was a lovely morning, although some clouds in the distance gave the ominous warning that a storm was approaching.

The gentleman paused at a street vendor and gazed at all the fine jewels and fabrics being sold. His daughter's birthday was rapidly approaching and he still hadn't found just the right thing to buy her yet. Smiling, he decided to take a gander at all the splendid things; silken purses and pouches, fine silver and gold bracelets, a ring or two with large rubies in the center, and many other valuables that made his hand instinctively reach for his wallet.

"Do you see anything that pikes your interest sir?"

The man shook himself out of his pensive thoughts to smile at the owner of the cart, "Yes, actually, but I'm not sure which one my daughter would like the best. Would you have any suggestions?"

The street vendor tapped his chin as he, too, swerved his eyes over his merchandise. "Hmm... a young lady sir? I'd have to implore you to buy something simple."

"Simple?"

"Oh yes sir, take it from a man who has three daughters of his own. A young lady of fine upbringing usually prefers something simple, but eye catching, and somewhat expensive, but from the heart. Like... ah! This for example!" He pointed to a golden heart-shaped locket hanging from top of the cart's window.

The gentleman eyed the piece of jewelry before a smile lit up on his face, "I think she'll love it. I'll take it."

The vendor smiled happily, "So glad to be of assistance, sir. That'll be --"

"YEA!! Take 'em to the gallows! Let the bastards hang!"

"BURN THEM ALIVE!!"

"Judgment awaits these damned souls!"

Both seller and customer arched their necks to see a mob of furious people marching towards the Ichijouji castle, dragging a young man and woman behind them while shouting obscenities at them.

A young man who had been following the mob stopped where the vendor and customer stood, his brows furrowed, "What is the cause of this insanity?"

The gentleman shook his head at the sight and pulled out a scroll from within his jacket, "I'm afraid another pair of innocent civilians are being taken to their deaths." He unrolled the parchment and revealed a large wanted poster.

"May I?" The young man asked, holding his hand out.

The gentleman shrugged and placed the scroll in his hand upon which the youth began scanning it with intense brown eyes. With each word written his eyes grew darker until they were almost black.

"It's a shame that our society has come to this," the vendor shook his head, "the Prince of Thieves isn't one that will just walk around in public! What makes those fools think they've caught someone whose unattainable?"

"I'm in complete agreement my friend," the gentleman stated, "the prince would have to be barking mad to be walking around in broad daylight with the whole city after his head. But I also hear he got pretty banged up after the palace ball fiasco."

The vendor smiled, "Ah yes I heard about that. I must admit, though, I have to admire the Prince; he doesn't put up with any crap from anyone, not even Prince Ichijouji. He's got courage, I'll give him that."

The young man had been listening to their conversation with a small smile on his face, although his eyes never left the paper. "I'm sorry to interrupt gentlemen, but would it be alright it I kept this?"

The man whose poster it was shrugged, "I don't see why not. Are you a fan of the young woman whose face is drawn? Lady Takenouchi? My, my, the Prince has fine taste; kidnapping such a jewel amongst jewels. Although I bet his Highness wasn't too thrilled about his bride being taken from him," he chuckled.

The young man smiled, "No I suppose he wouldn't, but is it certain the prince is behind it?"

"Not entirely, no," the vendor replied, "there isn't any concrete evidence proclaiming he did it. But we all know he did," he grinned, "what sensible single man wouldn't jump at an opportunity like that, especially since I hear the princess wasn't happy about her engagement. I heard she threw a fit."

The youth with brown eyes nodded, "I can't blame her." He placed the poster within the confines of his cloak before nodding to the two, "It's been a pleasure gentlemen, but I must take my leave." He calmly turned towards an alley and, as if by magic, vanished before the others' eyes.

The gentleman turned back to the vendor, "Now where were we? Ah yes! How much was that locket again?"

"Twenty five gold coins, sir."

As the customer reached for his pouch of money an Ichijouji soldier came up to them, "Can we assist you officer?"

The soldier said not a word but handed each of them a flyer with the face of a young man with brown eyes. Beneath the picture was written ALERT AUTHORITIES IF SPOTTED. While at the top was written EYE WITTNESS DISCRIPTION OF THE PRINCE OF THIEVES.

The customer and vendor stared at the picture before turning to one another, small smiles on their faces, "Well," the vendor said chuckling, "I guess he _is_ barking mad."

TTTTTTTTTT

_Brilliant Sora. Absolutely brilliant. _

Sora was tempted to lightly beat her forehead against the cool, damp grass she was currently staring at. If body heat could set flammable substances on fire she was certain her cheeks would have the entire courtyard aflame.

She hated the stereotype of noble women; beautiful, poised, gentle, and above all _graceful_. If there was one thing Sora Takenouchi was not capable of it was grace in heels. Who the hell _was, _really? Even Mimi struggled at times, although she would always blame it on a crack in the tile or some other ridiculous excuse. Lack of grace was just another point to add to the "why-Sora-believes-to-be-adopted" list she kept track of in her mind.

"I am _never_ wearing heels again." she murmured as she pushed herself off the ground.

"Thank god! Then you'll be able to save us all some misery."

Sora narrowed her eyes, bracing herself for what was sure to be an awkward and embarrassing moment. She turned to face the poor guy she-- no, no, no, _fell on_ just reminded her of her predicament... she turned to face the poor victim of her _misfortune_.

"I'm so sorry! I wasn't paying attention to where I was going." She laughed nervously but her laughter came to a halt when she saw the person whose legs she was currently laying across.

He was definitely one of the more handsome men she'd ever laid eyes on... which meant he _had_ to be with the thieves. Yes, it was painfully obvious -- just from the few of them that she'd encountered during her short stay -- that they were some of the most eye-catching people in Ichijouji. She was certain it had to be mandatory, like it was in some sort of contract they signed: "Must Be Sexy In Order to Join." She took into account all the thieves she'd met so far and noted that they all fit these credentials; Mimi and Hikari were gorgeous in both physical and mental definitions of the word, Yamato was almost god-like with his grey blue eyes and halo of golden hair, Daisuke was definitely easy on the eyes with his bright smile and mahogany colored hair, and now this guy -- with his short glossy blue locks and abyss-like eyes -- was added onto the archive.

Sora was brought out of her stupor when he took her hands and they rose off the ground together, "We'll need to find you some proper shoes before the day is over." He smiled and Sora found his smile contagious, although her cheeks were still stained bright red from her clumsiness.

"Oh! Sora this is Henry," Hikari had jumped to her feet as well, a warm smile on her face.

"Hikari my darling!" He exclaimed, taking her hand and kissing the back of it, "You're looking ravishing, as always," his sentence was finished with a suggestive wink that left Hikari rolling her eyes.

"Henry's an actor," she clarified, seeing Sora's confusion.

"Which means he's arrogant, flashy, and a complete jerk."

"You wound me Daisuke! Although it's your own damn fault you can't compare to the charm and mastery I have over women."

Hikari smirked, "And conceited. You forgot that one Davis."

Henry glared at her for a moment before moving to stand beside Sora, "Sora I must say what a privilege it is to finally meet you, but the rumors of your beauty don't do you justice. I was foolishly expecting a lovely rose, not this divine, rare, exotic --"

"Give it a rest Henry," Hikari giggled, "you've probably scared her, she doesn't know what to say!"

He grinned, "Only say that you'll join me for dinner to--" His invitation was cut off as Hikari jabbed her elbow into his side, snickering, "you know, you are the most hopeless person I've ever met."

He sighed dramatically, "Alas, the heart wants what it can't have." He shrugged apologetically in Sora's direction, "But I'm afraid it wouldn't have worked out anyway, my heart already belongs to the goddess Mai."

Hikari smirked, "And what is she the goddess of?"

His smile vanished as he closed his eyes and squeezed the bridge of his nose, "Loquacious obscenities."

"Only around you Henry, but who would've guessed!" Hikari giggled, "With the way you fawn over her I'm surprised she hasn't called one of the guards to file a restraining order against you."

He grinned coyly, "She'll come around...eventually."

"Inform me when that momentous day occurs," Daisuke smirked.

"I'll do you one better, you'll provide us with a toast at the wedding where you will promptly eat your words."

Daisuke rolled his eyes, "I'll be sure to request a ticket for the train of reality under your name when I visit Mrs. Mokobon later today."

Sora had been watching the exchange of insults and smart remarks with a sense of uncertainty. She still couldn't be sure of her place amongst the thieves. Was she a friend...or a prisoner? Technically she _had_ been taken against her will, but she knew she would have received a severe punishment (likely equivalent to the death penalty) if she remained at the castle. So here was the question presented before her; Had she been saved? If not, then what were they planning to do with her? If she _had_ been saved, then what were they going to expect in return?

Sora wasn't completely shrouded to the world outside of her plush home in Takenouchi. She knew the general idea of the way people thought, and in this instance she could understand that if something was done for someone then that someone would be required to do something in return. It was the way of the world; you save me I owe you a life debt. Her dilemma was centered around what that could mean...

Hikari, Daisuke, and Yamato seemed friendly enough, she didn't have too many worries about them... but the other thieves... the prince himself... they could be trouble.

"So Henry," Hikari's voice broke through Sora's train of thought, "what were you doing out here?"

"Waiting for the two -- or should I say _three_ -- of you actually." He paused, trying to decide the best way to approach the subject. "I suppose you could call me a messenger of sorts... I was asked to give you a message from your brother."

Hikari's eyes widened, "You've seen him!?" She stepped up to Henry with the fierceness of a tigress, "Where is he?"

Henry did not move from his spot despite the intimidating figure standing before him, "He would not say. All he said was --"

"And you let him go!" Hikari was practically radiating with fury, "Henry did Jyou not inform you of my brother's physical state!! He could get hurt! Or be recognized! He can't afford another serious injury or he'll -- he'll --" her eyes began to produce moisture despite her feeble attempts to control herself.

Sora watched the younger girl for a moment before placing a hand on her shoulder and squeezing it gently. "Hikari... I'm sure he'll be okay." To the noble's astonishment the brunette spun around and embraced her in a tight hug. Sora blinked in confusion and turned her frantic eyes towards the two males standing a few feet away, begging for some sort of instruction on how to handle this matter.

Daisuke smiled broadly and motioned with his hands to hug her back and Sora hesitantly copied his actions.

"He wasn't getting any better staying cooped up in his room."

Daisuke's smile vanished as he turned towards the spymaster, his hands inched towards his belt where he kept his daggers, "No one asked your opinion Henry."

Henry's stoic gaze turned towards him, "If I recall correctly Daisuke, you should have no say in the matter. Taichi was able to leave during _your_ watch, no?" Henry walked over to where the girls still stood and gently took Hikari's shoulder and turned her to face him. "Kari...I ran into him this morning -- here, to be more precise -- and I could tell he was suffering. You and Mimi and Yamato are keeping him in the dark about everything and --"

"It's for his own --"

"Good. Yes, yes, I've heard it all already." Henry rolled his eyes, "But let's put yourself in his place for a moment. The last thing you remember is being at the castle and then waking up in this place with injuries you can't remember receiving. And then when you ask what the hell has been happening you're met with vague answers that leave you more confused than ever. And to top it all off you're not allowed to leave your room! I don't know about you Kar, but I would be driven to the point of insanity by now."

Throughout Henry's explanation Hikari's eyes lost their puffy, swollen look as his reasoning began to breach through her overprotective little sister barrier that was built within her mind. She had to admit she would have done the same thing if she were in his place...

"I'm still going to unleash all my fury towards him when he gets back," she stated, a small smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. "He's had me worried sick all day."

A huge tension lifted from the air and the group of four took a deep breath of the cleared air.

"Now!" Henry announced on a much lighter note, "How about some breakfast!"

"Thank god." Sora whispered as she placed a hand over her growling stomach. "I thought you'd never ask."

TTTTTTTTTT

Prior to his stay with the Thieves, J.P. had never been one to obsess over his looks.

He stared into one of the vanity mirrors, shuffling his hand through his hair and closely examining the side of his chin where he was still anxiously awaiting the first signs of a stubble.

A good day for people like Junpei -- a child shipped off to a labor camp after his town was conquered by the Ichijouji army -- included finding even the smallest morsel of food cramped into the spaces between the bricks in his cell, discovering a spare patch of clothing from a deceased comrade that could be sewn onto the rags he considered clothing, and getting a small amount of water -- much too small to use for bathing and hygiene.

He turned to the side, eyeing his new blue vest that covered the simple white shirt he wore. The vest was the most expensive thing he had ever owned; a cotton material with small brass buttons carefully crafted into the hem where the two sides could connect. Black breeches that were a bit too big for him billowed around his ankles where new, pressed socks were hugging the lower half of his shins.

Smiling at his reflection and turning this way and that, J.P came to a simple conclusion; he had to be one of the sharpest looking people in the whole damn kingdom.

"J.P. are you still in there?"

Junpei's eyes lit up at the sound of the familiar voice, "Yes I am Zoe_." Yep, I'm sure she's been waiting all this time to see how I clean up_. he winked at his reflection as this thought crossed his mind.

"Well will you hurry up." Another voice this time, but still obviously female.

"Of course sweetheart_." Haha! J.P. you've already got them lining up outside your door_! Straightening his vest one more time, he reached for the handle and threw it open, expecting to see the awe-inspired faces of the female population! ...but to his shock that wasn't exactly the welcome he was greeted with...

**Smack!**

"Hey!" Junpei's hand instinctively flew to his cheek where a burning hand print now glowed fiery red against his pale skin. "What they hell was that for?"

Rika stood before him, hands clenched in fury, "Call me sweetheart again and I can assure you your face will be the least of your worries." She shoved passed him and slammed the door behind her, leaving J.P staring with a chagrined expression at the closed door.

"Sorry J.P, but I'm afraid it looks like you've made _the list_."

Junpei shook himself out of his flabbergasted state and turned towards the angelic beauty who stood with her arms crossed over her chest, a jocose smile plastered on her pretty mouth. After getting over his lucid embarrassment J.P shuffled his feet out of bashfulness, "What list?"

Zoe grinned at his obliviousness, "The list of unfortunates that have made Rika's bad side." She smirked, "I'm afraid not many have lasted long in this place after making _her_ angry." She chuckled as she watched Junpei's expression become slightly uneasy. "But don't worry, hopefully you'll be out of here before she gets the chance. We've lined up some possible job applications that we think will suit your... interesting talents." Zoe spared him a small smile before she spun on her heels and began navigating her way through the Thieves' den.

J.P, eyes glancing over his shoulder at the door, raced after her. "Hey Zoe! Wait for me!" Zoe's pace didn't falter, so it came as a mild surprise when her temporary house-mate caught up with her so quickly. "I was wondering if maybe you wanted to umm... I mean... maybe you and I could --" The duo had reached two large double doors before he finished his sentence, and although the thick wooden doors had to be about a foot thick the sounds of battle could still distinctly reach their ears.

Zoe spun around to face the edgy look that had suddenly found its way on J.P's formerly confident face, "Yes?"

With his extra height he didn't have to stretch his neck in order to peer around the blonde thief, but his actions -- eyes glancing back and forth between her face and the door, feet shuffling nervously, his hands slipping against each other as beads of sweat appeared on his palms -- were evidence enough to show Zoe that he was curious about the source of the commotion behind her, although he was terrified by the screams and cries of warfare.

"Uhhh... maybe you shouldn't go in there... it sounds dangerous."

Zoe grinned as she tossed her blonde hair over her shoulder, "Scared?"

Junpei immediately straightened and puffed out his chest just enough for Zoe to take notice. "Of course not!" he winked at her and bowed his head before continuing, "I just don't want a beautiful lady like yourself to be subjected to --" The door suddenly slammed shut.

Junpei, startled from his attempts at charm, began scanning the area frantically for signs of the girl... but she had disappeared!

Behind the doors the sounds of cheering and bloodcurdling screams became louder and more enthusiastic and the boy from the labor camps had several vivid images of what could be happening to the object of his affection behind those doors. He needed to charge in there and save her! He needed to do something! He couldn't let her be destroyed by the blood thirsty animals baying and snarling in the room before him.

"Are you just going to stand there gawking at the woodwork all day?" Junpei was suddenly thrusted aside from behind as the other girl -- Rika he believed she was called -- grabbed his shoulders and shoved him out of the way, mumbling an _almost_ inaudible "dumb fat ass" as she threw the doors open and stormed inside.

With the door now open and Junpei no longer disoriented he received his first eye-full of what had been making those terrible noises.

"Come on Takuya!"

"Come on Koji! You're not going to let him get the best of you are ya!"

The room Junpei was currently gazing into was the most amazing he'd ever seen...; the ceilings were high and cheap paper lanterns with candles hung from them, supported by mix-matched beams of all sizes, thicknesses, and colors. The wall immediately to his right was host to a number of broken theatre seats -- some with stuffing probing through the cushions, some containing rips and tears at the seams, some with three legs instead of four -- on a large raised platform where a number of his new comrades were sitting, yelling obscenities and insults at the four on the floor before him. The four on the ground each carried numerous traditional weapons -- swords, shields, bows and arrows, daggers -- and were jabbing, slicing, and stabbing at their opponents, using everything around them to try to gain leverage over the other three. Their skills were incredible, but it wasn't the amazing feats being preformed by the four thieves that left Junpei gawking; it was what was being stored within the room.

Coins of all precious metals imaginable -- silver, copper, iron, steel, brass, gold -- were piled high against the walls from every country he could name. He recognized a few of the different kings and queens represented on each of the different shaped pieces of metal; the silver hexagon shaped pieces of currency were obviously from a region in France, copper pieces from the port cities in the south that had their trademark fish-god engraved into them, there were many that Junpei didn't recognize, but the most abundant were those belonging to the Ichijouji kingdom's currency -- gold, silver, and brass with the Ichijouji's crest on one side and a cursive "I" engraved into the other.

But the coins weren't even half of the luxuries his eyes were currently feasting upon; jewels like rubies, emeralds, diamonds, and sapphires were glowing against the dull sunlight of the mountains of coins, poking their heads against the metals like gleaming flowers of all types and colors, sizes and shapes.

Clothing embroidered with glittering sequence, sparkling gems, and patterns formed from gold and silver coated string that were fashioned from precious materials like silks were folded neatly in piles on expensive looking tables and hung in elgant wardrobes.

Works of art -- murals, paintings, tapestries, and statues -- were situated all over the place, and dishes, goblets, silverware and other table decorations were almost as high as the piles of currency.

But, much to the delight of Junpei, the most exquisite part of the room was the farthest corner where there were several cabinets filled with the most delectable, rare foods and wines known to existence. Cakes of all flavors with frosting morphed into designs ranging from flowers to people taunted him. Hard candies and lollipops shined in the lights, glossy and gleaming. The smell of chocolate reached his nostrils even from the distance he kept himself from it all. French bread and other fine cuisine also made their presence known by the delicious smells radiating around the room. Junpei felt faint.

He felt like his throat was constricting at the amount of wealth being presented to him.

These -- These -- _kids_ had collected the greatest treasure trove on the planet's surface! And yet _he_ had gotten arrested for taking a cake.

"Will you be needing a bucket Mr. J.P?"

Junpei was brought out of his greedy stupor when a small metal pail was shoved roughly into his chest by the eldest member of the Thieves present. J.P instantly recognized him as the red-headed thief he met on the carriage.

Choruses of, "Koushiro!" echoed around the room as all heads turned to watch the entrance of one of the original seven. Instantly the fighting on the ground ceased, weapons were sheathed, and Takato, Takuya, Koji, and Kouichi wiped their brows with cloths and towels.

"Hey Izzy!" Takuya greeted enthusiastically.

"How are Taichi and the others doing?" Koji asked, tying his signature black cloth around his head after adjusting his pony-tail.

Koushiro smiled weakly, "Yamato, Mimi, and Jyou are all fine but..." he rolled his eyes, "I'm afraid Taichi's gone missing."

All happy murmuring came to a halt at this revelation.

"He's missing!?" Takato repeated, eyes widening.

"Which definition of missing are you referring to Koushiro?" Iori asked, his eyes troubled. "Did he run away? Or do you guys suspect foul play?"

"It's still uncertain at the moment. He went missing last night while Daisuke was supposed to be watching the door... Hikari was furious when she found out. I've already informed Catherine and Michael to be on the look out for him, but we all know that if Taichi doesn't want to be found it's unlikely that he will be." He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, "Which is why we need the rest of you to help us. Tai is in no condition to be walking around, he'll kill himself if he's not careful."

"And you want us to help look for him." Miyako summed up.

"Precisely."

Takuya clasped his hands together and turned to his team, "Alright guys, we have a search and rescue mission on our hands. Koji and Kouichi, go down town and scour the streets, listen for anything that could lead us in the right direction. Zoe and I will accompany you and then take to the roofs."

Takato nodded in agreement, "Ryo and Rika, you two should check around the castle, but be sure not to get caught."

"No kidding." Rika rolled her eyes.

Takato gave a pleading look to Ryo who smiled reassuringly.

"Iori and Miyako will take to the borders of the town and move inward while I'll start from the center and weave outwards. Takato I need you to go with Takuya and Zoe to check the rooftops." Koushiro commanded.

"What about me?"

All eyes suddenly turned towards the outcast of the room and Koushiro bit the inside of his cheek to keep from saying something cynical, "You stay here. We've got enough people on patrol, plus you don't even know what Taichi looks like."

Junpei looked prepared to argue, but there was no need, the next moment the door behind them flew open and a blur of red came rushing into the room before colliding with Takato and knocking him to the ground from the force of the impact.

"JERI?!"

TTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Taichi was smiling broadly as he skillfully walked through the cramped streets of Ichijouji's Second District market place. Dodging groups of exultant people, hopping over drunken people laying in the streets, and sidestepping around anyone that gave him more than a casual glance was a training exercise all its own, and one that he enjoyed partaking in wholeheartedly.

It was so wonderful to be back on the streets, away from the cold confines of his temporary room back at the Coventry. He cared not that his life was in danger at the moment, paid no heed to his stiff, aching muscles and stinging cuts, the sun on his face and the wind in his hair was so relishing and wonderful that it blocked out all the unpleasantries of the previous night and everything leading up to it.

"Excuse me sir?"

Taichi's musing came to a halt at the feather light touch of someone tugging at the leg of his pants. He turned to face the smiling, blushing face of a little girl -- maybe six years old -- with short, unevenly cut brown hair and large blue eyes. He smiled and knelt down so he was eye-level with her. "Hello, how can I help you?"

She giggled, "I was wondering if you would buy a flower from me... please! I almost have enough to buy something to eat for my little brother."

Taichi glanced behind her and saw a small group of children ranging from four to about ten watching them with large, desperate eyes. He gave them a quick wave that left them all smiling and giggling, "Sure I'll buy one." The little girl clapped her hands excitedly and pulled a small, delicate pink rose from a basket on her arm.

"Thank you, thank you so much!" She gently placed it in his hand and he pulled a small pouch from the confines of his cloak and handed it to her. Her eyes widened when she felt the weight in her palm, "H - How much... They're not _that_ expensive, sir."

Taichi grinned, "Take it. Now all of you can eat tonight."

The little girl looked conflicted for a moment, but closed her little hand around the pouch, a large smile on her face. She quickly gave him a brief hug and raced off to her friends, waving the small pouch excitedly and squealing.

Taichi spun the rose in his hand for a moment, watching the shocked reactions she was getting from the other children, who, consequently, kept glancing at him with admiration, before they scurried into the back allies. He silently stood up, his sides screaming in protest, his heart lighter than it had been all day.

It wasn't long ago that he and his friends were in their places, although, he noted smirking, these children were taking a more honorable approach to living on the streets than he and the thieves took.

He smiled as he stared at the rose, _Hmm... I think I might know someone who would appreciate a flower today. _

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

Ken narrowed his eyes as his eyes, once again, found their way up to where their glorious chandelier had hung not long ago. The empty space on the ceiling filled him with rage every time he chanced a glance at it, filling his desire further to find the Prince of Thieves.

He stared at the limp rope that once held something so valuable; in a sense, he was similar to that rope. He had once controlled the Prince of Thieves and all of his amazing swordsmanship, but, much like the rope that hung to chandelier, that control had been severed, and, just like the chandelier itself, Taichi had become deadly, almost succeeding in killing him.

Ken placed his elbows on his knees and rested his lips against his thumbs, a pensive expression combining with his glaring eyes. He had many plans. Many ideas. All of which could work against the thieves... but how many of these plots would work in his favor as well? This was the big issue he was faced with.

Taichi had become a symbol for rebellion, and if he captured him and put him to death the citizens would surely revolt. But he couldn't allow him to continue these heinous acts!

His only option involved what he told Myotis and Pied the last time the trio had met; turn the thieves' image into dastardly villians and turn the war against them. Pied had suggested to framing the thieves for an attack against the city... but would it be enough? Would the public's view of the thieves change drastically enough that they sided with their prince? Ken knew he was liked by the upper class people, and many commoners liked him more than his father, but how many would actually choose _him_ above the charming antics of his villanous rival? Unless he paid people off, he really couldn't think of anyone below the First District that would help him -- and what good were those rich idiots in actual combat?

Yes, this was a sticky situation indeed. He had the military trumph card, but the resistance had the Prince of Thieves. He had the ruthless soldiers, but they had the numbers. He had the knowledge of all of the political bits of war, while Taichi had the leadership experience. He had cruelty and anger on his side, while they had courage and hope.

He was pretty much screwed if he didn't get the people to flip sides. But how?!

Ken's eyes swerved to the door as the sound of someone knocking echoed around the huge room. He hated being interrupted.

"What reckless moron has the balls to aprroach me while I'm planning."

The door slowly opened and a young Ichijouji soldier walked in. Ken watched him advance and couldn't help but narrow his eyes; this soldier had an obnoxious aura about him, and an annoying smirk upon his face. His soldiers never approached him like that, they were all too fearful of his power and influence... well... almost all of them.

He mentally groaned when he realized who it was. "Yutaka."

"Your Magisty," Yutaka inclined his head towards the prince, still smirking.

Ken leaned back in his throne, placing a hand over his eyes in aggrivation, "What are you doing here? Your next briefing is tomorrow, I don't have time for this foolishness."

"Yes, because staring at the ceiling takes_ so_ much of your precious time." Yutaka chuckled. Ken's eyes narrowed and Yutaka's smile slipped. Yutaka cleared his throat before addressing the prince in a much more formal manner, "My liege, I thought I should inform you that I have a meeting with the Prince of Thieves tonight."

Ken grinned maliciously, "So you know where they are?"

Yutaka nodded, "They're in hiding my lord. Apparently the Prince of Thieves was mortally wounded the last time you saw him."

"Good." Ken laughed. Yutaka winced at the sound of the Prince's laughter; there was no joy, there was no happiness... it was sinister. "So where are they?"

"The Coventry on the edge of the Second District."

Ken's eyes widened in excitement. "If I sent an attack squad they'd be trapped..."

"On the contrary, my lord, they'd probably be able to escape befoe you show up and then we wouldn't know where they were." Yutaka then removed some papers from his breastplate, "Which brings me to the other reason why I'm here your highness." He cautiously stepped towards the prince and presented him with the papers.

Ken sighed as he stared at the name neatly written on the paper, his eyes betraying his confusion, "Jeri Katou?" He looked up and glared at the spy who, in turn, rapidly set to explaining.

"She is working for the Prince of Thieves, my lord. A spy for the enemy."

Ken stared at the name, his temper rising each time he read it. "I want this bitch captured, I will send Myotis to apprehend this traitor." He ripped the papers in half and tossed them to either side of his like confetti. "You," he turned back to Yutaka, eyes glowing with hatred, "get as much information about the Thieves as you can, but that is not your main objective tonight." The Prince nimbly rose from his throne and walked towards the haughty Ichijouji soldier, "You're going to help me put my plan for Taichi's capture into action, or," he grinned sadistically, "I'll kill you."

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

Mrs. Matsuki was smiling.

Normally this wasn't such a momentous occasion that it required mentioning, the bubbly middle-aged woman was almost always happy, but the last week or so had been rough on her and a few wrinkles that had been absent from her face prior to that stressful week were beginning to show around her eyes.

She reached into her cabinet for a long glass vase and quickly filled it with water from a small basin she kept on the counter of her fine establishment.

She had been frantic with worry upon hearing about the fate that befell her children that night of the Prince's ball. Word had spread like wildfire that both the Prince of Thieves and Prince Ken were dead, laying broken and bleeding beneath a huge chandelier. On any other occasion she would've brushed off these ridiculous rumors since Taichi was pronounced dead whenever he pulled an insane stunt or refused to show his face for more than three days at a time, but something about this particular announcement caused all the partiers in the streets to sober up and crowd around for more details.

She carefully placed a single pink rose in the water, watching it bob in the water before plunging to the bottom of the vase.

The story was given by a man Mie was certain to have attended the extravagant ball (what with his garrulous bragging and all), and perhaps it was the massive amount of details placed into the tale that left Mie quivering, or maybe it was the fact that Prince Ken was included amongst those that were pronounced irrefutably deceased that made her feel faint, but whatever the reason Mie had gained at least five years worth of grey hair in that single night at the thought of her son and adopted children laying, unmoving, on the cold floors of Ichijouji palace -- a place she knew they spent the worst years of their life being held against their will.

She turned around to place the beautiful flower on the counter where she could admire its beauty all day.

She spent four days restless, without any information from any of the Thieves, but finally a ray of light appeared when Takato came to visit her. He explained everything and even allowed her to hug and sob over him and the others for about an hour, turning away customers to allow her to gather her wits about her again. It took a while, but she began to recover and by that sunny afternoon she was back to her chipper self.

"Thank you so much for the flower Taichi, it's lovely," she smiled.

"Sure thing Mrs. Matsuki," he smiled bashfully, "It's the least I could do after putting you through so much."

She waved her hand, "I'm alright. There's no need to make a fuss over little old me, raising Takato has proven that I can handle almost anything." She turned to grab a rag from under the counter and proceeded in shining up the already spotless surface. "Taichi I know most of the details involving your condition," she paused to give him a stern look, "which leads me to believe you're not here with the consent of the other thieves."

Taichi shrugged, "And what would you say -- hypothetically of course -- if I told you your assumptions were correct?"

Mie placed her hands on her hips and glared at her adopted son, "Hypothetically, I'd say you were a fool. You're out and about with the whole city after your head and no one knows where you are! What would happen if you were caught? You'd be forcing all of your friends, and myself, through that rollercoaster of a ride we went through last week during your absence."

Taichi lowered his gaze, not out of shame because he did nothing wrong, but because he didn't want his mother figure to see the sudden darkness he knew his eyes must've taken. He was so sick of people telling him what was best for him. Jyou was a doctor, so, therefore, knew everything about the human body and what was best to keep it healthy, but he knew very little about the soul or the spirit. His physique was in bad condition, Taichi knew this, but if he stayed a moment longer in the solitary confines of the Coventry he knew his mentality would increase in instability. He was **not** going crazy, but the stress and anxiety of the situation were building up and he was afraid that one thing might set him off and cause him to say something or do something he might regret later. They were all worried about him, but they really had no idea how much they should be worrying about themselves when he was left to brood on his thoughts as long as he had.

"Taichi?" Mie was staring at him with worried eyes; his silence had caught her off guard.

"I realize you guys are only trying to do what you think is best for me," he stated softly raising his gaze, "but it was causing more harm than good."

Mie Matsuki saw a rare sight during that moment; the suffering and depression Ken had been responsible for creating in this remarkable boy. He didn't let it show often, being the epitome of enthusiasm and happiness that he was, but when he did Mie was always struck by the grief she knew most of the thieves suffered from due to their early childhoods.

Somehow she knew she must've overstepped a boundary. How? She had no idea. But that didn't stop her from slowly walking around the counter and enveloping him in a gentle hug, wary of his injuries.

He hugged her back, but his mind was still elsewhere. He would have to return home soon and when he did he knew he was going to be facing some upsetting arguments -- the scroll within his cloak was a reminder of that -- but he wasn't sure he wanted to return just yet.

He smiled slightly when he realized the more experienced thieves would now be placed at his door, and, more than likely, a second or third thief would be stationed to make sure he didn't escape. Yep, it will be like his stay at Ichijouji castle all over again.

"I'm sorry Mrs. Matsuki, but I really should be going."

She smiled as she held him at arms length, "You're absolutely right Taichi, you need to get back home and get some sleep." She beamed as she bustled back over to her counter and Taichi started for the door. "Oh! Taichi!"

He paused in the doorway, "Yes?"

She was now filing through some papers that had been collected on a table. After a few moments she let out a small, "Aha!" and separated a piece of parchment from the rest. "When will that new member be arriving for his interview?"

Taichi's brows furrowed, "What?"

She squinted her eyes at the letters on the paper, giggling, "My eyes aren't as good as they once were... umm... it says here that you and the others rescued a boy from the castle and he's currently staying with you."

Taichi closed the door and once again removed the hood from his face, striding over to stand beside the baker and read the letter for himself. "Junpei?"

"You didn't know? It says here he's been with you since the raid and you're currently looking for a job for him. Koushiro told me he suggested me as an employer to you and that you agreed."

Taichi's eyes narrowed, "You don't say. And Koushiro told you I agreed to this?" His eyes suddenly flashed with malice, "Well, that leaves me to wonder what else they've been keeping from me."

Mie quickly took note of the sinister edge his voice took and she carefully placed a hand on his shoulder, "Maybe this is all just a misunderstanding?"

"Oh no I understand everything," his voice was once again calm, but if anything it sounded more dangerous than ever. He reached into his cloak and extracted the wanted poster with the picture of the Sora drawn on its surface, "They failed to mention that Lady Takenouchi was missing as well. The older thieves believe that with me out of commission for a while they don't have to readily inform me about everything like they should. I trust their judgment on most things, but I won't stand for having decisions like who to consider trustworthy with the location of our hideout and who our members are made behind my back. They're pushing their luck."

Mie nodded, she had to agree with his logic. Yamato, Hikari, Koushiro, and all the original seven were the big decision makers, but Taichi would usually give the final word. If there was a dispute against what he said then it was taken to a vote, but for him not to even be informed on the occurrence of most of these things sounded almost mutinous, a thought which disturbed her.

"People make mistakes."

Taichi didn't respond to her final plea for mercy for the other Thieves, his blood was still boiling. "I'll stop by again tomorrow." He grabbed the handle of the door and calmly opened it, but despite his normal outward appearance, one thought was running through his mind as he skillfully navigated through the busy streets of the Second District markets; _Mistake or not, there will still be hell to pay._

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

"I knew it! Zat color is perfect vith your hair!"

Sora smiled nervously as the blonde thief held a long sleeved tunic against her chest. The tunic was a rich burgundy color that had a sharply declining V-neck that left Sora raising her eyebrows, but the French thief assured her that she had a white undershirt that would still look "_très magnifique_!"

"Thank you Catherine, I can't express how great it is to not be wearing that dress anymore."

Catherine grinned broadly, "You are quite welcome Sora, but zere iz no reason for you to thank me, I love dressing my friends." She giggled, "It iz one of my... how do you say... hollies?"

"I think you mean hobbies, love."

Catherine grinned, "Yes! Zat iz the word I was looking for, merci Henry."

Hikari laughed, "Well I'm relieved to know that I won't be Catherine's only doll for a while."

Catherine waved her hand, "You know you love it ven I find new things for you to wear. Now let me see... vich shoes, vich shoes..."

Sora watched as the young woman dug through the huge pile of clothing and shoes she had placed on the table. Sora was still in shock that Catherine was more than willing to give up all of these beautiful garments to supply Sora with a new stylish wardrobe.

During their breakfast Catherine had shown up and introduced herself to the noble, promptly bonding with the beautiful auburn-haired young woman. They realized they had quite a bit in common with one another since Catherine explained that she had, before the Ichijouji invasion, been a wealthy French aristocrat.

"Yes, I vas taken from my home when I was very young because my family refused to submit to the Ichijoujis. I grew up in dis 'orrible place, but it has gotten much more bearable since I have become acquainted with the Thieves. Koushiro 'as been kind enough to help me with my English, and all of the people here are so vonderful. I don't know vat vuld've happened if Taichi and Hikari had never found me."

Catherine understood what it was like for Sora to lose her family and everything in such a short period of time, so she did what any other red blooded young woman would do in this situation; she offered to take Sora shopping.

Sora was more than willing to accept whatever Catherine offered her, as long as it wasn't any trouble, which, Catherine assured, it wasn't.

"Catherine has enough clothes to supply an army," Daisuke chuckled, "I'm sure it can't be _that_ much of a burden to get rid of some of it."

So Catherine had left momentarily only to return with Michael assisting her in carrying an armful of some of the most gorgeous articles of clothing Sora had ever seen. After a couple of hours of "which brings out her eyes more, this or this?" or "Daisuke you have no fashion sense, the one on the left looks _so_ much better." Sora now had a complete wardrobe of five tunics, four pairs of breeches, two formal gowns, and about ten pairs of shoes.

"A lady can never have too many shoes." Catherine explained.

"Or common sense, but you don't see too many girls lining up for that," Henry smirked. He immediately received three intimidating glares from three equally intimidating young women.

Daisuke smirked as Henry was placed in the hot seat. He enjoyed watching the arrogant spymaster squirm under their stares for a few minutes before rising out of his chair, the legs scraping against the floor, "Well ladies," he made it a point not to make an exception for Henry in this general grouping, "as much as I'd love to stay, Takeru and I are part of the next search party going to look for Tai."

"Are you rendezvousing with the younger members as well?" Henry questioned.

"Yes, and they'll accompany us back. But, wait a sec, why aren't _you_ coming with us Mr. High-and-Mighty?"

"I'm meeting with Yutaka later today," he replied with a scowl.

"Why don't you like him? Yutaka is a perfectly nice young man." Catherine questioned.

"I don't trust him."

"Taichi doesn't either," Hikari noted. "And I'm not too fond of him myself... but he does supply us with important information we wouldn't be able to receive otherwise."

"If half of it is even true."

"You two are far too suspicious for your own good," Catherine smiled.

"Well, regardless of what I think of him, we're forced to work together, so he's visiting later today."

"Fun," Hikari smirked.

"Oh yes, _loads_."

Daisuke smirked, "Well, I shall see you all later." He spun on his heels and started for the corridor that led to the courtyard.

Upon opening the large wooden doors he smiled as he felt his tensed muscles relax a little after residing within the stuffy kitchens for so long. He couldn't wait until Taichi was well enough to return to their hideout; despite the beauty of the Coventry, one who was accustomed to the insanity and mischief of their hideout was easily bored in a place filled with so much tranquility and peace. Not that anything was wrong with peace and happiness! ...it just failed to provide entertainment for the notorious thieves.

Daisuke sighed, he felt such sympathy for his friend and mentor; he really didn't understand how an adventurous spirit like Taichi's could be caged in a prison -- a magnificent prison, but a prison nonetheless -- like this. He understood completely Taichi's desperate desire to escape this place, which, unbeknownst to the other thieves, is precisely why he left his guarding position the previous evening.

Hikari would maim him if she knew he let him go on purpose, but he felt he did the right thing... unless Taichi is found dead in a gutter or something... but he highly doubted anything that dramatic would happen!

"At least I hope so..." he murmured to himself.

"Davis I always knew you had psychological issues, but I didn't realize just how much they'd progressed."

Daisuke looked over his shoulder and rolled his eyes, "Impeccable timing as always T_J_."

"Oooh! Impeccable! Big word Daisuke! Have you been reading the Koushiro's log book again to try to impress Hikari?" Takeru smirked as he joined his friend in the courtyard.

Daisuke's smile soon turned to one of mockery , "Surprisingly no, but I wouldn't put it past _you_ to pull something along those lines, the way you pine after her is so obvious a blind person would see it." Takeru laughed good naturedly in response, although, Daisuke noted with satisfaction, his cheeks were a few shades redder from embarrassment. "So where have you been all morning? You missed meeting our residential princess."

"Sora? Oh, I met her yesterday. I have to admit that the rumors of her beauty are not over exaggerated, although I'm relieved to know that the rumors regarding her personality are also correct. I don't think I'd be able to handle it if we were catering the whims of a spoiled princess."

Daisuke nodded in agreement as the duo continued towards the doors on the opposite side of the courtyard. "She's nothing like any of the aristocrats I've ever had the misfortune to meet."

Takeru smiled. "As much as I enjoy her company though, it's so tedious keeping her a secret from Taichi."

"Yes, it is pretty annoy--" Daisuke's steps faltered as Takeru's statement was processed in his brain, "A secret? Taichi doesn't know!?" He turned to face the blonde thief, panic in his eyes, "We're harboring an awall princess who happens to be the fiancé of our most hated enemy! An enemy, must I remind you, that has been the cause of all the suffering and pain we've been through in our lives and you're telling me Taichi doesn't know!"

Takeru blinked a few times, confusion on his face, "You didn't know?"

Daisuke sighed dramatically, "Whose brilliant idea was this?"

"Davis, we've got more pressing matters at hand than who to point fingers at." Takeru's innocent aqua eyes had narrowed due to the seriousness of the situation. "If _you_ didn't know then I'm guessing no one else knows either, except, perhaps, the other older thieves."

"Hikari doesn't know," Daisuke stated. "She was gushing about how she couldn't wait for Sora to meet Taichi."

Takeru bit his lower lip, "This places us in a difficult dilemma... we have to either find Taichi before anyone else does, otherwise Sora's presence could be revealed, and tell him ourselves and bare his temper," both thieves winced at this thought, "or, we can keep him as far away from Sora as possible until Mimi and Yamato decide to tell hm."

"I should've known those two were behind this!" Daisuke exclaimed.

Takeru crossed his arms over his chest, "Alright, well I'm not keen to face Taichi when he's angry, so my vote's for the second one."

"Mine too."

"Okay, Daisuke I want you to go stand by the entrance on the off chance he'll show up, I'm going to find Yamato and Mimi. They're the idiots behind this whole thing so they've got to know what's going on."

Daisuke saluted overdramatically before racing back into the kitchens from whence he came.

Takeru ran a hand down his face, muttering curses about his brother and his girlfriend and their underestimated value of Taichi's temper. _Of all the ridiculous -- _He shook himself out of his stupor, noting that he hadn't the time to dwell on how to kill his brother. So, without further delay he rushed towards the entrance in the hopes that he would run into the people he was just seething about.

TTTTTTTTTTTT

Takato stared at his girlfriend with wide, shocked eyes as she told her tale.

Takato was one of the few that were allowed to stay behind after Jeri's entrance, mainly because he refused to leave Jeri when she looked so distressed, and Koushiro wasn't in the mood for another argument. Taichi still needed to be found, however, so, much to the dismay of the other thieves, Koushiro sent them all away until only Junpei, Takato, and the red-headed genius himself remained.

Seeing the obvious fear on her face and the way she clung to Takato like a lifeline led Koushiro to believe that one of his many case scenarios that involved the girl had occurred, and this fact bothered him greatly.

When Takato's relationship with the shy young woman continued to progress Koushiro had suspected something would happen to her... something that could have devastating effects for her and the thieves themselves. When Takato wanted to introduce her to all of them and reveal the part of him hidden from her Koushiro had pleaded with Taichi to forbid it.

"It will only lead to disaster," he had stated.

For days the older thieves argued over this situation, some siding with Takato, some with Koushiro, until finally Taichi made his decision. He chose to compromise with both parties by telling Takato that he must first figure out how Jeri would react to such a momentous piece of information. Koushiro tried to protest, arguing that Takato wouldn't be able to handle the situation as well as one of the elder members would, but Taichi had given him the benefit of the doubt and so began the dramatic theatrical performance that would determine whether Jeri lived or died.

Takato had enthusiastically complied to Taichi's wishes and rushed to meet his girlfriend that afternoon. Much to the dismay of the Prince of Thieves, though, Yamato, Koushiro, and Jyou all agreed that someone should shadow the younger thief to make sure Taichi's orders were not being ignored. With the number of supporters for this suggestion Taichi had no choice but to allow it, so Hikari, a neutral member of the conflict, agreed to be the one to shadow the younger boy.

Later that evening Hikari returned before Takato with shocking news; Takato had done just the opposite of what he was supposed to do. He let too many clues, too many hints, too many signs slip until it took Jeri approximately thirty seconds to understand exactly what Takato was referring to, and, unfortunately, she freaked out.

The reaction was completely understandable since she was working in the palace and had heard all of the lies spread about Taichi, but nonetheless Takato returned heartbroken, and it was only going to get worse for the thief.

Taichi was enraged, he had put so much faith into the boy only to have it thrown back at him. But by unintentionally telling Jeri everything Taichi was now placed in a difficult position; he needed to figure out what to do about the girl and he needed to do it before she started spreading rumors about them. With a heavy heart he ordered Takato to be locked into his room while two of the more responsible members apprehended Jeri and brought her to their hideout where she was to be put on the thieves' version of a trial. She was terrified, obviously, but the trial was so much worse; Takato was released to be Jeri's defender, but he was going up against the mastermind of the thieves himself, Koushiro. Koushiro and Takato were practically at each others' throats the entire time, but Taichi paid neither of them any heed; he was scrutinizing Jeri's every move, every expression that crossed her face, every tiny detail that would've gone unnoticed by anyone else.

She was obviously uncomfortable, and who wouldn't be in that kind of situation? But Taichi had seen nothing that convinced him that she would betray their secret... however, he hadn't seen anything that proved that she _wouldn't_ either. Finally he decided to speak,

"Jeri, I'm going to ask you one question and I want you to answer with complete honesty; don't beat around the bush or lie because you think your answer is wrong, got it?" Jeri nodded weakly in response. Taichi folded his arms across his chest and leaned back into his chair, his eyes still narrow, "Do you trust me?"

That was the last thing Jeri expected to be asked so it took a few moments for her reeling mind to calm so she could think straight. What kind of question was _that_? She was tempted to say yes just because she felt she would be punished in some way if she said otherwise... but the Prince himself warned her not to lie and saying yes would definitely be considered lying on her part. She considered her options and finally decided to answer with an honest "No."

He smiled in response, "Good, because if you did I would consider you a fool." His body instantly relaxed and he jumped from his seat in a manner that was very Taichi-like, completely opposite of how he acted when he was the Prince of Thieves. He walked over to Jeri, stopping just a few feet from her, before continuing, "You see Jeri, I am in a rather... difficult situation thanks to your boyfriend." He chanced a quick glare towards Takato before his eyes swerved back to the suspicious eyes of Jeri. "I'm stuck in an ultimatum; either you have to prove to me that you are, without a doubt, completely trustworthy, or I'm afraid I'll have to kill you. This decision is neither fair for you nor for me because, quite frankly, I don't know you." He ran a hand through his hair and started to pace, "You are in a similar position Jeri; You know nothing about me except the things you've heard, which, for all you know, could be lies, your first instinct is not to trust me, a wise decision, but would you kill me?" Jeri vigorously shook her head which caused Taichi to smile again, "Exactly. So what to do..." His pacing ceased as he plopped back into his chair and fixed his eyes on the floor, his brows creasing in concentration.

The other thieves, completely silent during his explanation, shifted anxiously in their seats, exchanging looks and whispering quietly amongst themselves. They had never seen a case like this, where the solution wasn't blatant.

Finally Taichi came out of his daze-like concentration and immediately focused on Jeri, "I believe I've come to a consensus." He had a large smile on his face, "You will stay here with us for a week or so and then we will come to a conclusion. Judging you minutes after we've met seems unfair, and this way you'll be able to get to know the other thieves and vise versa before we do anything we might regret." He glanced around for any objections before a sly smile curved his lips, "Of course you'll be staying with Hikari or Miyako, I don't plan on being kept awake by your raging teenage hormones."

Koushiro smiled, he could still remember the shade of red Takato's face had turned and he could definitely say that any tomato would've been wild with envy.

He was the only one unsatisfied by the conclusion. He didn't think along the lines of killing the girl but he most certainly disagreed with her continued participation in their secret world for safety precautions. Running amuck at Ichijouji castle was bound to cause problems and he was afraid that this soldier that had stopped her was now going to cause issues for the thieves... issues that could've been avoided if a certain girlfriend hadn't been submitted into their dangerous life.

But, shockingly, the news of the suspicious guard was not the worst of what she told...

"Soo... this prince dude is planning on killing his father?... What a fruitcake."

Takato glared at the oblivious commoner once Jeri was finally finished reporting everything she'd seen and heard the last few days. "This is a serious matter," he scolded.

Junpei shrugged his shoulders apathetically. "The king is a bastard, we all know that, what's the big deal if his crazed son decides to kill him? Wouldn't it be better for us with that tyrant off the throne?"

Koushiro rolled his eyes, "Absolutely not. Sure, having the King gone would be a step forward, but with Ken on the throne it would only lead to five steps back. Ken is far more ruthless and cruel than his father, and, if anything, his father is the only one that can keep him in check. If something were to happen to him Ken would have free reign... free to do whatever he pleased..."

This very thought caused three of the four present to shudder.

"I can't imagine what he would do to all of you," Jeri muttered.

"I would hate to see what he would do to Taichi," Takato stated, eyes clouded with anxiety.

"Jeri, you are absolutely certain--"

"Yes Koushiro! For the final time! I heard Ken as clear as day on his way out the door, and many of the other servants heard the same thing. I'm not hearing things."

Koushiro sighed and rested his face in his hands, "I apologize Jeri, but you have to understand that this piece of information could prove disastrous for our cause. Our rebellion plans depend entirely on the King staying alive."

"Why?" Junpei asked, sincere curiosity lacing his voice.

"The King is hated by all, a rebellion against him wouldn't require too much pressing, a rebellion against the Prince however..."

"The prince is thought of by most people as a god sent compared to his father. Most people believe that nothing could be worse than the King, so they support Ken. There are very few that truly know how evil he is; slaves and servants, criminals, and his soldiers, and they're all completely under his command." Takato finished bitterly.

"So a rebellion against him would be much harder to form?"

"Precisely Jeri, precisely..."

There was a long moment of silence as the thieves contemplated how to bypass such an obstacle. Finally the only non-thief decided to break the silence.

"Well, sounds to me like you guys are screwed."

The other three each gave him an irritated scowl, "Thank you _so much_ JP."

"Hey, I'm just voicing what you're all thinking." He leaned forward in his seat just a bit, "There are two options that I can clearly see. One, you could warn the King that his life is in danger, but let's face it, the bastard's not going to think his son is going to be the culprit. Or number two you could let the events play out and try to come up with a solution."

Koushiro nodded, "I was thinking along the same terms. We're going to need the other older thieves to help me out with this one, maybe Taichi can think of something I haven't."

"But what about his injuries?! Jyou said any stress --"

"Could kill him? Please Takato, think rationally. If Taichi wasn't killed by severe torture, malnutrition, and a freaking chandelier falling on top of him and cutting him into pieces then I highly doubt a little stress will be the cause of his death. Besides, if you think about it, when he does find out about everything I think all that fury will be more harmful to him than me telling him now. Damnit, I told Yamato and Mimi not to keep him in the dark." He shook his head furiously. "Junpei you're coming with me. Takato escort Jeri back to her house, I don't like the sound of this soldier interrogating you Jeri so I want you to follow all the safety precautions we've taught you."

Jeri nodded in response, "Alright."

"I'll meet you at the church Koushiro." Takato stated.

Koushiro smirked, "Good, because I have a feeling that all hell is going to break loose and I'm not eager to face it alone."

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Daisuke sighed as he leaned against the doors of the Coventry.

"And here I thought guarding Taichi when he was _here_ was boring." He chuckled dryly to himself as he watched the dwellers of the church run about with their daily errands and whatnot. "I suppose I deserve this. If I hadn't let Taichi go in the first place..." He paused his musings and thought of the situation he would've condemned Taichi to if he hadn't gone with his instincts. A small smile appeared on his face, "Okay, I suppose this boredom is worth having our Taichi back."

He crossed his arms over his chest, "But I'm still bored."

"Zen... oof!... vould you mind...giving...AH!!"

Daisuke's eyes widened as the next moment an avalanche of different pieces of clothing fluttered to the floor, all coming from a hallway that was currently blocked from his line of sight by a wall. He quickly rushed around the corner and was welcomed by the interesting picture of Catherine laying face down in a pile of clothes.

"Catherine? What are you doing?"

Catherine raised her head and blew a strand of her blonde hair out of her eyes, "I am 'aving tea with the queen. What does it look like you imbecile!!"

"Um... laying on the floor?"

"Wow, you _are_ ze genius." She lifted herself onto her knees and began gathering up the garments and folding them in her lap.

Daisuke grinned before plopping on the ground and assisting her. "What happened?"

"I suppose I got a little carried away," she replied bashfully, "I 'ad too many outfits to carry, so I could not see where I was going."

Daisuke grinned, "Don't worry Catherine, I fall down all the time it's no big deal."

Catherine smiled at his attempts to cheer her up, "Zank you for your reassurance Davis." She gracefully rose to her feet and offered the maroon haired thief a hand, which he happily accepted.

"I'll help you take the rest of these to you room if you'd like."

"Zat would be very...gentlemanly?"

Daisuke chuckled as the duo continued towards the back rooms, neither noticing the door behind them opening.

_TTTTT_

_Okay...now!_

_Come on Taichi this is ridiculous, do you WANT to stand out here all night?_

_..._

_..._

_Go in...now! ...Nooooow!... now? God Damnit!_

Taichi irritably ran a hand through his hair, cursing himself for being such a spineless coward. He glared at the building before him; bathed in the light from the setting sun and glittering from its many windows the outward appearance of the Coventry was anything BUT dastardly. It gave any passerby the impression that it housed God himself since it was probably the most innocent and beautiful building in Ichijouji.

But Taichi knew differently. Behind its false impressions and beauty lies a place filled with his inner demons, inner demons just begging for him to open the door so they could unleash their hell-sent fury upon what little sanity he had left.

_You're being absurd! If anything is waiting behind those doors it's more than likely going to be one of your friends waiting to tell you off for making them worry._

Taichi knew the rational voice in his head was making more sense than he was, but he still couldn't will his feet to move up the stairs separating the street from the Coventry. There were seven stairs in total. Seven small, _insignificant_, _trivial_ steps that could be treaded upon by even the smallest of feet.

_Exactly, they're JUST stairs! So what's stopping you?_

They're not JUST stairs! They're better comparable to the seven different levels of hell -- each stair left him feeling more and more tortured than the last, leading him closer and closer to the heart of his misery.

_Oh please, aren't we being just a bit overdramatic?_

Taichi rolled his eyes. Okay, maybe a bit...

The cause of his pain was evident, and out of all of the prominent choices the Coventry in the Second District was not one of them. But was it really so much different than Ichijouji castle? True, it had no cells or tools of torture, but whose to say it's not a torture chamber in its own way? Taichi was finding it to be as bad -- if not worse -- because of the time he was granted to do nothing but recollect on old times past. It was terrible! At least in Ichijouji he was too busy trying to survive to think about what was happening to him, or what happened to him years ago in that very cell. But now in the Coventry where his only company was solitude all of those many memories and thoughts that he shoved to the back of his mind were beginning to resurface.

He was alerted back into the world around him by the sound of heavy footsteps marching towards him. _Soldiers_ he realized.

Without hesitation he spun around and darted across the street. The entire block was a residential neighborhood with about ten decaying houses, the Coventry, and a butcher's shop that had only mediocre supplies and was about to go out of business. He dashed between two of the houses and easily scaled the house, using its broken bricks as foot and hand holds. Upon reaching the roof he crouched beside the chimney and watched the small platoon of soldiers march by. For a moment he was worried that they were conducting another search for him, but as they glanced around Taichi could tell that they were looking around, but not really seeing any of their surroundings. He concluded that they were just patrolling the streets for anyone that was still out wandering this close to curfew, and relief instantly washed over him.

However, precautions still needed to be taken so he remained completely still until the sound of their unsynchronized marching was only a dim drumming in the distance before standing up. With the immediate danger gone he calmly removed his hood, allowing the rays of the setting sun to bath his face in a rich glow.

He closed his eyes and smiled halfheartedly, "I guess even the best days have to come to an end eventually. Too bad."

The day wasn't anything spectacular... but it was the first time in weeks that he didn't feel like a breathing corpse; dead in spirit. He couldn't express how wonderful if felt to be whole again, and the last thing he wanted was to return to what he had been before his escape. He opened his eyes, noting immediately how the liveliness had already started to dim, how his smile already began to feel false -- placed there for show.

He smirked as the sun continued to set, casting the top of the chimney in shadow. "Do I really want to go back to a place that feels more like a cage than a cell in Ichijouji castle?"

It was a question that had been burning in his mind all day, but now as he spoke it he realized how ridiculous going back sounded. He didn't want to go back to a place where his nightmares had absolute control over him. Hell, he didn't think he _could_ go back to a place like that... at least not for long periods of time

He narrowed his eyes, aggravated.

Was he really that weak? Was he incapable of staying alone without disturbing the resting places of shameful habits he picked up during his past?

He didn't think so, in fact the more boastful sections of his brain were shouting a very firm HELL NO!! ...But then why were the scars on his wrists becoming more and more apparent as he stayed there?

He ran a hand through his hair, frustrated. "Damnit Taichi, pull together what little sanity you have! This is ludicrous!" He chuckled, "And speaking of ludicrous, now I'm talking to myself. _God_, I need a mental hospital or something." He shook his head, but continued smiling.

He had to face the facts though, he had to go back. If for no other reason than to scare the hell out of Yamato and Mimi for keeping so many things from him.

At the thought of his two _friends_ a new spark of intense fury began to swell within his breast, as well as a new sense of determination that overwhelmed his fear of the Coventry. He'd willingly face all of his demons if it meant that those two would be put back into their places, in fact he could probably get his inner demons to help...

He smirked as he jumped off the roof, landing without difficulty. He ignored the way his palms began to sweat and how his throat constricted the closer he got to the building.

_It's JUST a building, It's JUST a building, It's JUST a building where your traitorous friends are lurking, It's JUST a building, It's JUST a building, It's JUST a building._

He sprinted up the stairs, not allowing his mind a chance to get worked up again, and threw the doors open.

The cool autumn wind soared passed him and blew out several candles that illuminated the dark corridors. Taichi wasn't sure what he was expecting when he finally returned, but it wasn't anything like _this_. Silence. That's what he was welcomed to; absolute silence.

"Where is everyone?" He asked himself as he removed his cloak and took the poster in his uninjured arm.

Silence. Chilling, ominous silence.

_They're still a chance! We can turn around right now and never come back!_

Taichi ignored the little voice in the back of his head and set his mind to work on more productive thoughts. The first objective on his agenda was to locate Yamato and Mimi and give them the guilt trip of the millennia... now where would they be?

He contemplated between the many areas the couple could be located and found that he was hoping against hope that they would be in the back rooms, that way he could avoid an audience when he confronted the puppet masters in this theatrical charade they created. He wasn't sure how much their argument would escalade, but he was comforted by the sword hanging from his belt. It was possible that the two natural rivals would choose violence over words, it had happened on several other occasions where Jyou and Izzy had to step in before one of them got seriously injured. They always forgave each other afterward, Yamato calling Taichi a hot-tempered idiot and Taichi returning by saying Yamato was a pretty-boy with an attitude that was too peeving for words, but this time was different...

Taichi had never felt so betrayed before, and since the main conspirators were his two best friends he felt _violated_. He knew exactly how they accomplished keeping him in the dark, and the very thought almost made him physically ill.

Hikari would never agree to such treacherous activity, so he came to the conclusion that she was as much in the dark as he was, not so much about the outside world but more along the lines of the innards of their group. That left five other members of the elite, six if Henry was included in all of this. He knew Jyou would agree with Mimi and Yamato because it would keep him unstressed which would theoretically help him get better, but he knew the other three wouldn't agree with what they were doing. Koushiro was loyal to Taichi through and through, they worked as a strong team and were more like brothers than friends, he knew Koushiro wouldn't approve of sneaking behind his back. Henry had taken a blood oath -- his idea, not Taichi's -- that he would never double cross the Prince of Thieves, so he wouldn't partake in anything that would even come close to breaking that oath. And Takeru would completely side with Hikari's views, even if she wasn't there, so he was out of the picture as well.

So we're left with a tie, and how would one solve something this momentous? Brag about their position of course! Yamato had used his title as Second in Command to surpass everyone and ultimately become the victor in this disagreement. Taichi would be damned if he didn't suspend that title the moment he saw the bastard.

He shook his head angrily as he rounded the corner to their private wing, but when he did he was met by the most peculiar sight.

Daisuke and Catherine were standing in Catherine's doorway chatting pleasantly with one another.

"Zank you again Daisuke."

"No problem, people tell me all the time that I was born to be a clothes rack." Daisuke grinned brightly.

"Vell you are scrawny enough," she winked.

"Hey! I am NOT scrawny! Do you see these muscles," He flexed one of his arms to prove his point.

Catherine rolled her eyes, "Yes, yes, very good Daisuke." She giggled as he continued muttering to himself, "Vell, I really must put the rest of those clothes away. _Au revoir mon ami_."

He rolled his eyes, still annoyed by her earlier comment, but waved before turning and walking down the corridor. "Scrawny? Yea right I am anything BUT --" Daisuke's ranting paused when he finally focused on the hallway in front of him, in fact, his whole body paused.

"Good evening Davis, having _fun_ with Miss Rupert, are we?" Taichi smiled deviously.

Daisuke didn't respond, instead he rushed to meet his mentor, "Taichi! Where the hell have you been! We've been worried sick about you! Are you hurt? You better not be otherwise I'm sure the whole church will be prepared to destroy me! Do you have any idea how close Hikari was to killing me earlier?! I'm lucky to still be alive!!"

Taichi laughed, "Are you done yet?"

Daisuke shook his head, "You're such a bastard Taichi! I thought you were dead!" He took a few deep breaths and slowly composed himself, "There, now I'm done."

Taichi smiled, "Relax Daisuke, I'm fine. I didn't so much as fall down and scrape my knee today, and you're obviously not dead so your worrying was completely unnecessary."

"_Right_, unnecessary. Remind me to use that one next time Hikari worries about you and see how _she_ takes it." He rolled his eyes.

Taichi smiled again, the first sincere smile Daisuke had seen on his mentor's face since he was captured, "Davis I never got the chance to thank you. By allowing me to escape... I think you pretty much saved my life." He placed a hand on the younger boy's shoulder, "You're a good friend Daisuke, a better one than my idiot elite members have been."

Daisuke shrugged, "I'm just glad to see that you're feeling better."

Taichi's eyes suddenly darkened, "Not entirely, unfortunately." He stopped spinning the poster between his fingertips and handed it to Daisuke, who unrolled it slowly and cautiously. "I learned quite a bit on my small-scale adventure Daisuke." He watched as the color drained from the younger thief's face, "But I'd have to say the most prominent piece of information I discovered was that everyone, yourself included, has been keeping me completely uninformed about the things happening outside. I had no idea Sor -- Lady Takenouchi was missing, nor did I have any idea public searches were being conducted. Hell, they didn't even tell me the price for my arrest was raised!"

Daisuke tore his eyes away from the poster, "Taichi, to be honest most of us younger thieves didn't know you were left in the dark."

Taichi was silent for a moment, and the look on his face was equivalent to someone slapping him. "What?"

Daisuke nodded, "We thought you were up to date on everything that was happening. I only just found out this morning that you didn't and it was fricken TS that told me. The nerve! _He_ was informed instead of me! Man, there must be some sort of code that states that --"

"Daisuke shut up for a second, I'm trying to think."

"Don't hurt yourself," Daisuke muttered under his breath, but one glare from Taichi made him clamp his jaw shut.

Taichi started to pace, his eyes darkening more and more. "So, Yamato and Mimi have not only gone against _me_, but our _entire family_ as well." He stopped pacing and a smile worthy of the devil crossed his face, "Well, this changes everything."

If Daisuke hadn't known Taichi as long as he had he'd admit to being scared shitless by the terrifying glow in his eyes, but he _knew_ Taichi so he found himself only along the lines of terrified. He looked absolutely menacing and Daisuke was starting to wish that he hadn't mentioned anything to Taichi...

**_!!SLAM!!_**

Daisuke jumped when Taichi's fist came into contact with the door that was inches from his face. He was shocked into immobility and kept glancing between his clenched hand and his enraged face. And yet the only thought running through his head was.

_Wow. Two words my friend: Anger management._

Taichi pulled his hand back suddenly and in seconds Daisuke discovered why.

"Vat is going on!" The door opened harshly and a furious looking Catherine emerged, "Who ze hell is banging on my -- Oh my goodness! Taichi!"

Taichi blinked rapidly as his brain tried to comprehend what the young French woman was saying. In the few seconds it took for Catherine to get over her shock of seeing him, she had thrown her arms around his neck and started scolding him with rapid English mixed with French.

"Oh my goodness Taichi! _Là où vous avoir été_!? Ve vere so worried about you and _Je ne peux pas croire que vous feriez quelque chose si inconsidérée_! Hikari was out of her mind vith worry!" She grabbed his shoulders and pulled away from him, glaring, "I should be absolutely furious vith you." Slowly her face broke out into a smile, "But I am too relieved to see zat you are alright." She hugged him again and Taichi was left looking over her shoulder at Daisuke, the picturesque of confusion.

Daisuke rolled his eyes and muttered something about "Women and their mood swings."

Catherine was suddenly aware of the younger thief's presence and spun around, her face malicious. "Daisuke Motomiya! You are ze very reason Taichi escaped! I swear if it vas I that vas in charge of punishments you vould rue ze day you made so many of us worry! Of all of ze stupid, 'orrible, reckless, irrational, awful things you could 'av done!" Daisuke, in his attempts to escape the blonde woman's wrath, had backed up as far he could and now had his back pressed against the wall. Catherine, however, was still in front of him and yelling loud enough to rouse the dead. Daisuke immediately looked to Taichi for help, but the Prince of Thieves simply laughed before winking and walking away.

Daisuke's eyes widened and he quickly grabbed Catherine's shoulders, halting her accusations. "Catherine did Hikari follow my orders earlier?"

Catherine fell into a thoughtful silence as she tried to recall what those orders were.

Daisuke sighed, seeing the blank look, "Did Hikari escort Sora back to her room?"

"Oh!" Catherine smiled, "Yes, I believe she did." Her smile soon vanished though as she watched Daisuke's face go from worried to one of absolute terror. "Vat?"

"Catherine you have to help," he pleaded. He glanced around the corridors fearfully before whispering just beside her ear, "Taichi doesn't know anything about Sora!"

Catherine drew back in horror, "You _are_ joking, no?"

He shook his head and the two stared at each other, dreadful images running through their minds at the speed of light. "Daisuke, we 'av to do something!"

"I know, I know! He's already furious since he found out that everyone has been lying to him, if he discovers Sora..."

Catherine's eyes widened, "Alright, you will get Taichi as far away from here as possible, I don't care how you do it. I vill take Sora out of ze Coventry until Taichi has... iced over."

With their agreement set the two sprinted down the hallway.

Taichi was quickly approaching the door where he hoped Yamato and Mimi would be located, and with every step his anger grew bit by bit.

But how was he going to start?

He wasn't the type of person to storm into a room and start shouting about whatever was bothering him. He had more tact than that. He chose, instead, to play a game with his victims; mess with their heads, make them wonder whether or not he knew what it was they were keeping from him. It wasn't the nicest thing to do, but it usually ended with them apologizing and admitting to what they'd done.

But this tactic had only been practiced on the younger members.

He smirked, Mimi and Yamato were going to be a challenge and he enjoyed challenges.

"Taichi! Taichi wait!"

Catherine and Daisuke sighed with relief when he stopped, but he stopped _too_ abruptly. Catherine managed to stop her mad dash just before colliding with him, he grabbed her wrist with his uninjured hand to keep her balanced. Daisuke, however, crashed into Catherine's back with enough force to send both of the sprawling, Catherine directly on Taichi's broken arm.

Taichi yelped when he felt pain from his arm rush to every part of his body. Through gritted teeth he managed to mutter, "Damnit! What the hell were you two doing?!"

"Oh! Taichi I am so sorry," Catherine quickly climbed off of him. "Here, allow me to look at your arm."

Taichi winced as he sat up, his arm, still in its sling, cradled against his chest. Catherine gently ran her delicate fingers over the bandaged skin, feeling for any bones that might have been knocked back out of place.

"What's the diagnosis doctor?"

Catherine smiled slightly, "I believe you vill live, but you vill 'av to have your arm amputated."

Taichi rolled his eyes, "Damnit, not another one."

Her smile dimmed somewhat, "It looks very painful." She traced her fingers over the serious bruising that wasn't covered by the bandages.

"Yea, image how it _feels_." He laughed as the duo rose to their feet.

"Vell, I volunteer Daisuke to take you to ze kitchens to get you zomething zat will cool off your arm."

"Me?"

Catherine glared at him, "Yes, since you are ze reason his arm is hurting again."

Daisuke stared at her as everything clicked. _Brilliant!_ This was an inconspicuous way to get Taichi away from Sora! "Alright, alright." He muttered angrily. "But I don't see why Taichi needs an escort."

Catherine grinned and gave Taichi a quick peck on the cheek, "Feel better my friend."

"Catherine I really don't --"

"Do you vant me to get Hikari?"

Taichi was silenced, knowing that his sister would take something simple like this to the extreme.

"Very good!" Catherine giggled.

Taichi rolled his eyes and he and Daisuke headed for the kitchens. "There's no arguing with her is there?"

"Which is different from every other woman in our group _how_?"

Taichi grinned, "I guess you're right, bunch of crazy, controlling --"

Catherine rolled her eyes when the two were out of earshot. _Crazy, maybe a bit, but controlling! ...well... maybe a bit of that too.._.. She laughed as she walked towards Sora's door, the very room Taichi was headed for not two minutes ago. Without his knowledge, Yamato and Mimi had moved into his room since he was still stationed in the hospital, while Sora was living in Yamato's room.

She lightly knocked on the door. "Sora?" No response. She knocked again, "Sora, may I come in?" Still nothing. Catherine's brows furrowed as she slowly opened the door and peered in.

It was a modest room; a small bed with clean white sheets, a chest at the foot of it that was now filled with Sora's new wardrobe, a desk opposite of the door with quills and stationary, and a small bedside table with a bible resting on top. The window overlooked the Coventry's garden, dead at this time of year, and white curtains hung billowing in the slight breeze that sneaked through the open window. It was a lovely room, but the only reason for her entering the room wasn't there!

"Sora?!" She quickly walked inside, checking small corners and beneath the bed, praying that she did not just send Taichi straight into the fugitive's sight. "Oh gods," she muttered. Without wasting another precious moment the young French woman dashed out of the bedroom and raced along the corridors, hoping to whichever god was listening that she wasn't too late!

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

Henry scowled at the young man before him.

Yutaka, still in his Ichijouji solder uniform, was smirking broader than Henry had ever seen on him.

"So, what'll it be Henry? Ten gold pieces for this amazing piece of information, or nothing."

Henry narrowed his eyes further, "You should not be in this for a profit, you _should_ be in this for the cause. If it will benefit Taichi and the other thieves you should be willing to give it up without this nonsense."

Yutaka smirked, "So I take it you don't _want_ to know what the Prince is up to?"

Henry growled, "You're a sick bastard." He calmly reached into one of his pockets and threw a small violet pouch on the table between them. "You get your money," his hand slammed on the pouch as Yutaka reached for it, "_after_ you tell me what's so important."

Yutaka glared at the blue-haired spymaster, "That condition wasn't part of my terms."

"But it _is_ part of _mine_." Henry snapped.

The two spies glared daggers at one anther, neither backing down from the challenge. It was finally Henry that drew back, grinning maliciously. "Well, if you don't believe your info isn't worth the amount you requested, then maybe I should just dismiss you until you can find something that's worth all of the time you've wasted."

Yutaka chuckled, "Poor simple minded Henry, always believing your opinion to be right. I just want my rewards to be guaranteed, it's almost Tommy's birthday and I want to get him something nice. I can assure you what I overheard is worth far more than a measly ten gold coins, I'm giving you a bargain! You should be thanking me!"

"Yes, well, I'll be the judge of that once I find out what it is you overheard." Henry hissed.

Yutaka was grinning again, a grin that could be mirrored on a spider that was about to eat its prey, watching it struggle. "I heard this straight from the Prince's mouth. He was discussing with Pied and Myotis how the search for your beloved Prince was going, he wasn't happy with the results. So he came up with a plan to lure you out of hiding." Yutaka was watching Henry's face with interest, waiting for the calm facade to vanish. "He's going to have a public execution in the town square for all of the poor souls accused of being in liege with you thieves. It's going to be one hell of a bonfire." Yutaka grinned when Henry's knuckles clenched. "The Prince feels that you thieves won't be able to resist playing the hero and saving them, so he's going to have guards stationed on the streets to apprehend you the moment you show yourselves."

Henry narrowed his eyes, "That bastard! He's killing hundreds of innocent lives to capture us!"

Yutaka chuckled, "You _are_ the infamous, murdering, dastardly thieves Henry, you should be used to these kinds of punishments for the public."

Henry rose from his seat and slammed his palms on the table, "Are you insinuating something?"

Yutaka's grin had yet to fade, "Only that your cause might be doing more harm than good. Ever consider something like that?"

Henry snarled, "Are you sure _you're_ not the one who views his opinions above everyone else's? If we were hated by so many wouldn't we be behind bars already?"

The glaring contest began again.

This time it was Yutaka who stopped first, "I've reported my bit, so if you have nothing left to say to me then I'll just take my earnings and leave."

Henry shook his head, "No, you're staying here until Taichi returns. He'll want to hear all of this from you."

Yutaka smirked, "Loose sight of him already? Your Prince is rather unpredictible isn't he. Perhaps having him behind bars would be beneficial for you thieves as well."

Henry's fury had reached a boiling point by the end of that statement, "You son of a --"

"Cursing makes you sound unintelligent Henry. I would expect better from a Lord's son, but I guess when you're around street rats like _them_ for too long --"

Henry, righteous fury giving him extra speed, was on the other side of the table in the blink of an eye, a knife pointed at Yutaka's neck. "You want to repeat that_ now_ you ball-less wretch?"

Yutaka glanced at the blade, all traces of humor gone. "Hard of hearing?"

Henry smirked, "Don't push me Yutaka. I know you're not on our side of the playing field, and the moment you slip up, " he pressed the knife into his skin, just far enough to cause a sweat to form on Yutaka's brow, "my hand might do the same."

Yutaka, eyes narrowed, batted his arm aside. "It's a pity your brains haven't been put to better use Henry, but it's your decision I suppose..."

A knock on the door interrupted the bluenette's response and Henry reluctantly strode across the small, private room the two spies were using for their conference. He opened the door, as calmly as he could muster, and his eyes narrowed with confusion.

"Michael? Jyou? What can I do for you?"

Michael's face was distressed, but Jyou was the picturesque of serenity. "Hello Henry. Pardon the intrusion, but I thought you'd like to know that Taichi has returned. He'd probably like to hear what the two of you are discussing."

Henry nodded, "Thank you Jyou, we'll be there in a moment."

Jyou smiled crookedly and lowered his voice before asking, "How are things going?"

Henry scowled darkly, "Wonderfully, you'll be invited to the wedding."

Jyou chuckled, "Why Henry I didn't realize you swung that way." Henry's scowl deepened. "Alright, alright, I get it, Henry doesn't have a sense of humor while Yutaka's here. I'll be sure to remember that."

Henry rolled his eyes and turned to Michael, "And what's wrong with you?"

Jyou's lighthearted mood quickly dried up, "Well... umm... you see... Michael was the one who noticed Taichi was here, but it wasn't umm..."

"He was with Catherine." Michael finished, eyes downcast but fists clenched.

Henry's eyebrows shot up, "Care to elaborate?"

Jyou rubbed the back of his head, "Michael's afraid that they're... Well, they were in an _interesting_ position and Michael expects the worst."

"What kind of interesting position?" Henry inquired.

"On the floor."

"Oh." Henry wasn't sure what to make of _that_, but at the moment they had more pressing matters to attend to. He turned his gaze back to his... acquaintance and ushered him over to join the conversation. "Michael I don't believe you've had the displeasure, this is Yutaka Himi. Yutaka, this is Michael Barton."

"Well met Yutaka." Michael held his hand out for Yutaka to shake.

Yutaka glanced at his outstretched hand, disdain crossing his face, "Another street rat."

Michael's eyes widened a bit and his hand slowly dropped to his side. A sudden dislike for this young man bloomed in his bosom.

Henry's sour attitude had returned and he glared at the spy, "Yutaka, Jyou has just informed me that Taichi has returned."

Yutaka smirked, "Good, for the public's sake anyway. At least now we know he's not out murdering anyone."

Michael and Jyou narrowed their eyes into deadly glares, almost matching that of Henry. "Who are you to speak about Taichi that way?"

"Someone that's got a piece of valuable information that might just turn the tables of the rebellion if you play your cards right. Now, where is he, I feel filthy staying in this vicinity any longer than necessary."

Three absolutely loathsome glares followed his back as he started walking down one of the corridors.

"Well, now I see why you don't like him." Michael mused.

"I think it might be wise to get rid of him," Jyou noted, glancing at his comrades.

"We can't. Koushiro says it's too late, this bastard knows too much, if we cut him loose he might tell Ken everything, and we can't afford that." Henry stated.

"I don't know... it seems more harmful to keep him around if you ask me."

"I agree Michael, I agree. I have a strong feeling he's not on our side..."

"Let's hope, for our sakes, our suspicions are incorrect." Jyou said quietly. "Because if he's been passing information to Ken... we're all screwed."

The three exchanged worried glances before following the Ichijouji soldier, all three considering the same thing; plunging their swords/knives into his back.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTT

"Taichi when are you coming back home? It's too quiet without you and the other older thieves."

Taichi rolled his eyes, "Whenever our resident doctor is convinced that I won't break into a million pieces by stepping outside."

"Oh great, we might as well move all of your things here then."

Taichi laughed, "Jyou's not that bad... just...a little eccentric." Takuya, Daisuke, and Zoe raised their eyebrows and Taichi laughed again, "Okay, okay, so he's the most crazed, idiosyncratic, obsessive person I've ever met in my life, but he means well."

Takuya sighed dramatically, "But if you were outside all day and nothing happened to you, shouldn't that be proof enough that you can come back home?"

"I hope so."

Daisuke nodded in agreement, "This place is really starting to annoy me, do you realize how many times I've gotten lost in this place!"

"Oh come on you guys, it's so pretty! I wouldn't mind staying here for a few days." Zoe countered.

Taichi smiled as the trio erupted into a debate over whether or not the place was an enjoyable place to stay. He had his own opinions of the place, but decided to keep those to himself to avoid awkward questions. The younger duo had walked into the Coventry just as he and Daisuke were passing by, and, since Taichi hadn't seen any of the younger members since his captivity, he was instantly bombarded with hugs and questions.

"Taichi I heard you took on fifty guards single-handed!"

"Takuya you idiot, a chandelier fell on top of him."

"That's still pretty impressive though. I mean he lived!"

Taichi grinned as the duo erupted into another argument. Honestly, it was like having a second Daisuke and Miyako.

"Well, Taichi you have to replay every detail later. Man, I'm so mad that I missed it! The fight of the century and I was stealing stuff." He trailed off with a roll of his eyes.

"I'm also curious about how you managed to switch places with Daisuke." Zoe added. "Did you have this planned out the entire time?"

Daisuke beamed, "Yep... well... sort of."

"We'll explain later." Taichi stated, "Catherine's trying to catch up with us." He slowed his pace and the other three mimicked him, each wondering how the heck he did that.

Daisuke kept glancing over his shoulder the closer she came. Why wasn't Sora with her?  
Catherine was panting when her steps fell beside the others, and Taichi patiently waited for her to catch her breath before asking, "Is something the matter Catherine?"

She glanced at Daisuke and he understood immediately, Sora wasn't in her room... which meant she was probably still in the kitchens!!

"Umm... I believe Hikari vas looking for you."

Taichi narrowed his eyes suspiciously, "Then why didn't you tell her to go to the kitchens? You didn't have to run all the way over here to tell me that."

Crap!

Daisuke needed to come up with something fast! They kitchens were located at the end of this hallway and if Sora's there...

"Ummm... while you two figure things out I'll go get you something for your arm Tai!" Daisuke said quickly before dashing down the rest of the corridor.

Taichi watched the maroon-haired boy race down the hallway as though his life depended it. He slowly returned his focus to the french woman, crossing his arms over his chest and looking only slightly intimidating. "What's going on?"

"Notzing!"

"Uh huh, then explain to me why Daisuke is suddenly in such a hurry right after seeing you."

"He iz shy?"

The two younger thieves giggled at that suggestion. Daisuke was anything BUT shy.

"Wrong excuse Catherine. Care to try again?"

"He does not like seeing you in pain and wishes to get somezing to help very quickly?"

Taichi narrowed his eyes further, "We were _walking_ just a minute ago, why the sudden change?"

"Mood swings?"

The younger thieves began laughing again.

Taichi pinched the bridge of his nose and bit his lower lip to keep from snapping at her ridiculous remarks. "How about we try the truth this time Catherine. Why do you want me out of the kitchen?"

Catherine looked nervous, "Alright! I admit it, we vere planning a surprise party for your return and it iz in the kitchen."

Taichi glared at her and spun around, continuing towards the kitchens.

Catherine's eyes grew as she raced after him, but unfortunately when she tried to stop him he broke into a run. Catherine quickly realized that all of those years of running from Ichijouji soldiers paid off, she couldn't keep up with him.

He reached the doors to the kitchens without even breaking a sweat and calmly opened the doors.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Takato had very fond memories growing up. He, unlike most of the thieves, had a very pleasant childhood with his mother and father (before he died due to the TB outbreak), and it got even better when Taichi and Hikari stayed with them, even if it was only for a couple of years. He was one among the few that hadn't joined the thieves because of a terrible past they were hiding from, or looking a for a replacement family for the one that had been destroyed by war.

He joined to help the cause. He joined to give Taichi and Hikari another soldier for their stealthy rebellion.

He had many happy memories growing up, but the one he was experiencing right now was among the sweeter ones.

It wasn't a particularly beautiful evening; dark storm clouds hung in the air and blocked out all the stars and the moon. He couldn't use any of the more common routes; sticking to the filthy alleys to avoid detection by Ichijouji soldiers. And there was a very high risk of being caught by Ken's men and brought before court to be tried and killed. If anything, the situation should place this moment as one of his least favorite memories, but one large factor changed that; Jeri.

Yes, at that very moment his beautiful, innocent girlfriend was leaning against his chest, waiting for the signal that it was safe to continue towards her house. Takato figured that if he was in prison, awaiting the death penalty, if he saw Jeri's smiling face at least once then he'd be able to plunge through the unhappiness and find the light of the situation.

She was that wonderful, and he loved her for it.

"What are you smiling at, Takato?"

Takato turned his attention back to the focus of his thoughts and smiled at the smirk on her otherwise innocent face. "Just thinking about you."

Jeri giggled softly and gently shoved him, "That was a very cheesey line Takato." She smiled at him and gave him a quick peck on the cheek, "But you get points because you looked so cute when you said it."

He blushed and rolled his eyes before returning them back to the two guards stationed at either side of the alley they were currently hiding in. They were pacing in front of it, their eyes scanning everything attentively, and Takato quickly realized these soldiers were in a more experienced army. _The King must be getting increasingly paranoid if he's placing his better soldiers on curfew partol_.

"We'll have to take to the roofs," he whispered softly.

Jeri gave him an incredulous look, "Takato you can't be serious! _Me_, scaling a building! I have trouble keeping my balance on flat surfaces."

Takato laughed quietly, "Relax." He carefully took her arms and wrapped them securely around his neck, "Just don't look down, and hold on tight." Takato watched as the fear in her eyes slowly resided, he knew she was worried due to her fear of heights.

Jeri nodded slowly and burried her face into his chest, tightening her grip around his neck. An almost inaudible, muffled "Okay" gave Takato the incentive to move, and he quickly jumped up several crates and barrels until he was high enough to reach the roof.

"Are you alright?" He asked Jeri softly. She nodded and he wrapped his arms around her waist for a moment, assuring her that she would be safe with him. Then he grasped the ledge of the roof and pulled them upward, careful not to scrape Jeri's back against the edge. He positioned himself so that his legs were dangling off the edge while Jeri sat in his lap, her face still buried in his chest. He smiled and kissed the top of her head then slowly guided her to the top middle section of the roof.

"Alright Jeri, you can look now."

Jeri smiled as she glanced around before her eyes were drawn back to Takato's, "Thank you."

He shrugged, "No big deal."

They joined hands and began walking through the darkness toward her small house on the edge of the First District.

They walked in a comfortable silence before Jeri decided to break it, "Takato?"

"Hm?"

"Are you..." She trailed off, unsure how to ask the question.

Takato turned his gaze from the darkness ahead to stare at his girlfriend as she tried to form words. "What's wrong Jeri?"

She sighed, rolling her eyes, "Do you think I'm in... danger?" They were both quiet for a long time. "You know, since that Ichijouji soldier stopped to question _me. _I know I left behind that purse and his brother brought it back to me, but it seemed so... strange that he happened to start interrogating the only person with ties to the thieves in that entire market place."

"Jeri don't worry, I think you're just being a little paranoid." Takato grinned, squeezing her hand comfortingly.

She lowered her eyes, "I hope so..."

He smiled, "Don't worry, I'll protect you, and Taichi and Yamato and all of the others won't let anything bad happen to you either." He laughed softly, "You've got the best protection force in all of Ichijouji working for you, there's nothing to be afraid of."

A smile smile found its way upon Jeri's face after Takato's reassurances. "Okay, I trust you."

"Good to hear, because we're going to have to jump down from here."

Jeri groaned, "I forgot that when you go up you have to come back down."

Takato laughed and crouched in front of her, "Here, climb on my back."

Jeri complied hesitantly and Takato took off towards the edge at a pace that made Jeri's grip on him tighten out of fear. Takato crouched on the ledge and glanced around cautously, searching for any Ichijouji soldiers.

"That's strange..."

"What?" Jeri slowly peered around his shoulder.

"There aren't any soldiers around here. Everywhere else there have been small squads stationed after every few houses, here... there's no one..."

"Is that cause to be worried?"

"Most of the time, yes."

"They could be switching squads?" Jeri suggested, trying to find a logical explanation for the strange events.

"Yea... or they could be lessening the amount of guards towards the castle because the King thinks we're hiding in the Second District." Takato seemed satisfied by these two options and carefully scaled down the side of the building, using windows, broken bricks, and any other manner of makshift foot and hand holds he could find.

When they were safely on the ground Jeri climbed off his back and the duo raced across the street, careful to remain hidden from the light coming from the surrounding windows. Jeri reached the door first and opened it silently, ushering Takato to follow her indoors and away from the dangerous streets.

When the couple was safely inside Jeri closed the door and began fumbling for something to light the candles in her house.

"Takato, I think I left some matches on the table by the door, can you hand them to me?" Takato didn't respond but the next moment she felt a small box appear in her hand where her matches were located. "Thanks." She quickly grabbed the candle closest to her and let it, allowing the warming light to evaporate the shadows around her.

"You're welcome."

Jeri's eyes suddenly widened at the unfamiliar voice, fear immediately seizing her. She spun around only to have a rough hand clamp over her mouth while another hand grabbed her wrists and brought them behind her back, the owner of the hands overpowering her without much difficult.

"LET HER GO!"

Jeri stopped struggling as more candles were lit, allowing her to see her captor's face. She felt the color drain from her face when her eyes adjusted to see Takato being restrained by several large men... all clothed in black.

The Black Squardon.

"My. My. My. I came here to set a trap for a mouse and end up catching a street rat as well. Hm hm hm. It must be my lucky day."

"Myotis." Takato hissed.

Jeri wasn't sure who this man was, but he was obviously an important member of the Black Squadron, and Takato obviously didn't like him. Myotis had unusually pale skin that almost looked blue in the dim light, he had long blonde hair that was tied into a single strand down his back, and the coldest grey eyes Jeri had ever laid eyes on. She supposed he might have been handsome at one point in his life, but that eerie, merciless aura around him make her shake in fear.

"Myotis what the hell are you doing here, let Jeri go she's done nothing to you." Takato ordered, eyes narrowed.

"Oh but that's where you're wrong." Myotis chuckled in his throat before walking towards her. "She's been leaking information from the palace to you thieves, and she will have to be punished for her heinous acts against the crown." He placed a hand on her cheek, "Pity such beauty has been wasted on filth like the thieves."

Jeri narrowed her eyes and jerked her face away from his hand.

"And such spirit." Myotis chuckled, allowing his teeth to flash in the candle light.

"Leave her alone!"

Myotis's smile only broadened at this demand and he calmly turned to face the thief. "And what will _you_ do if I don't? Hm? Taichi and Yamato aren't here to protect you." He clenched one of his fists and plunged it into the boy's gut, grinning sadistically as he watched the thief double over as far as he could with his arms still restrained. Myotis chuckled and gave a hand signal to the other members of the Black Squadron who instantly advanced upon the bound thief, cracking their knickles and drawing weapons from their belts.

Jeri watched in horror and Takato tried to fight against them, despite how hopeless the cause was, but he was quickly overrun by the sheer numbers of the Black Squadron. Soon pained yelps and sounds of a beating reached Jeri.

"NO! Takato!" she screamed, struggling again, but it was no use... she was too weak. "Takato! No stop this! Please stop! STOP!!"

Myotis turned to her, still grinning, "Oh don't worry my dear, your turn will come." He walked towards her again, "You last four years as a spy. Let's see how long you'll last in the Ichijouji dungeons."

Jeri screamed as the men that had her restrained began to walk towards the exit, dragging her with them. "Let go of me! LET GO!! TAKATO!! **TAKATO**!!"

When her screams were the only sign of her presence Myotis snapped his fingers and the remaining BLack Squadron scurried out the door and into the night, leaving only him and the bruised and bloodied mass on the floor in the small house.

He scowled, disgusted that people like this were what was keeping Ichijouji from reaching its full potential. He leaned down and grabbed the boy from the collar of his shirt and lifted him so that their eyes met; bruised and swollen met cold and icy. "I want you to run back to whatever hell hole you and the other street rats are hiding in and tell you beloved Prince that we've taken your little girlfriend. She will just be the beginning of your payment to the Prince." He dropped the younger thief on the floor and stepped on him on his way out, blowing out all of the candles before closing the door.

To any passerby it would appear as though nothing dastardly had just taken place.

A low growl of thunder echoed across the sky and a few drops of rain splattered upon the cobblestone streets.

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

Time had slowed.

There was no other way Sora could desribe it. The four stood, tables and other obstacles pushed to the back of the room, each holding their prefered weapon and moving with such speed, agility and grace Sora was sure there was some mystical force about the way they moved. After watching their quick, precise movements Sora concluded that their amazing precision and almost sixth sense reactions HAD to be due to time slowing down, just around them, and just enough for them to know exactly what was going to happen a split second before she did.

It was almost like a dance. A violent, dangerous, amazing dance that Sora wished she could be part of.

She could count the number of times she nearly cried out when she was sure Hikari was going to be stapped by Yamato's weapon, couldn't remember how many gasps had escaped her lips when Mimi preformed a trick with her knives that left Takeru on the defensive, couldn't fathom how often her jaw hit the table when the blonde brothers teamed up and did something that could only be accomplished through a psychic link between the two.

They assured her they hadn't prepared or memorized a battle pattern, that this entire preformance was live and improvised, but Sora was beginning to have her doubts.

It was only after an impressive display of teamwork by Hikari and Mimi that the practice session officially ended. Hikari had dropped to the floor just as Takeru had swung his blade at her, she rose up with such speed that Takeru was caught completely off guard when she crossed her two blades (faces up of course) and slammed them into the blonde's abdomenm sending him sprawling into Yamato. Mimi had taken advantage of Yamato's momentary shock to ram her shoulder into his chest and knock him down, instantly pouncing on him and crossing her blades across his throat while Hikari copied her actions. There was a moment of tense, awed silence before the four began grinning and congradulating each other, apparently Hikari had been trying to find a partner that could take down the brothers and Mimi was the first to help her succeed.

"Yes!! I told you your day would come Tk!" Hikari giggled, jumping off of the flushed young man. She quickly sheathed her weapons before holding a hand to her fallen comrade, "Good match Takeru." Her triumphant smile dazzled her best friend and for a moment he stared at her hand, confused, before accepting it, his cheeks turning red.

Sora grinned as the duo walked back over to her, still hand-in-hand. "So, did you enjoy the show Sora?"

Sora didn't know how to answer the question without sounding like some rabid fangirl, so she grinned broadly and nodded enthusiastically. "I wish I could fight like that!"

Takeru placed his sword in his sheath and smiled, "I'm sure you'll learn a thing or two if you hang around all of us for a while. We're pretty good at training new recruits."

Hikari nodded, "But you'll have to ask Taichi of course, he knows everything about swordsmanship. He could turn you into a master in a couple of weeks!"

Takeru gave her a disbelieving look and Hikari rolled her eyes in response, "Okay... maybe not a _master_, but you'd be really good."

"Kari adores Taichi." Takeru laughed.

"I can tell." Sora smiled.

"He's just jealous because he and Yamato don't get along as well." Hikari winked.

"What! We get along fine! Hey Matt we get along grea -- Oy! Get a room you two!"

Hikari giggled as she watched the couple glare at him for interrupting thier make-out session, but, grudgingly, stood up and joined their small group.

"Just you wait Takeru, when you and Hikari finally get together we're going to mock you mercilessly," Yamato grinned evilly.

Hikari and Takeru began stuttering protests as their faces began to radiate embarassment, the duo glanced at one another between every other objection, as though unsure.

"Denial," Sora stated, smirking.

"No!!"

Sora held up her hand, "I've been conscious for less than twenty four hours and _I _see it."

The three that weren't being tormented errupted into laughter as the younger thieves present continued to get more and more uncomfortable with the topic.

"Let's change the subject." Hikari said suddenly.

"Oh no, you two aren't getting off that easy." Mimi smirked.

"We should lock them in a closet together and see how long they last," Yamato said deviously.

"Or we could --"

Whatever brilliant idea Sora had come up with was quickly forgotten as Daisuke raced into the kitchens looking paniced and frantic. "HIDE!!"

Yamato raised an eyebrown, "From?"

"Taichi! He -- and I -- and Catherine -- and the door -- and with Sora -- urghh! Just HIDE!!"

Yamato and Mimi instantly jumped out of their chairs at the mention of their friend. "Taichi's back!?"

"Oh crap." Takeru whispered.

Hikari glanced at the four of them confused, "What's going on?"

No one responded and Mimi quickly took Sora's arm, tugging her gently towards the other entrance at the opposite side of the room.

"Mimi what's going on?" Sora asked.

"No time to explain!" Mimi whispered. "Yamato, go black the door or something!"

Yamato and Daisuke immediately raced for the door, but it was too late.

The doors swung open to the sound of Catherine screaming for Taichi to stop, but he was too annoyed and angry to listen. He walked into the kitchens only to be grabbed by Yamato and Daisuke.

"Taichi what are you doing back?" Yamato asked, trying -- and failing -- to inconspicuously lead Taich iback into the corridors.

Taichi's eyes instantly became deadly and he ripped his arm away from his blonde rival. His voice wasn't raised, but Yamato had never heard anything more menacing in his life than what came out of his friend's mouth, "**Don't touch me Ishida**."

Yamato stared at him, confused, "Tai wha --"

Taichi spun around and broke out of the hold the two thieves had him in and walked further into the kitchens, anger pulsing off of him like an aura.

Yamato glanced to the other side of the room and saw that Sora had stopped Mimi, her hands on her hips. Taichi hadn't seen her yet! If he could keep him occupied long enough...

The blonde thief jumped in front of his rival, his eyes narrowed. "What's you problem?"

Daisuke flinched when he heard Yamato utter those words. Wrong thing to say...

Taichi glared at him, his eyes were so dark they were almost black. "Stand aside."

"You didn't answer my question."

"And I won't, otherwise I might do something I might regret." Taichi glared at him and tried to move around him, but Yamato grabbed his shoulder.

"What's wrong with you?" He demanded. Yamato suddenly felt nervous. There was something obviously wrong with his best friend. "Did something happen."

"YOU TELL ME." Taichi snapped. "Oh wait! But you won't do that will you. I had to find out everything that's been happening in this entire fucking city by leaving! I couldn't count on YOU to tell me what the hell's been going on!"

"Taichi?"

Taichi tore his enraged eyes away from Yamato and allowed them to soften a bit when Hikari rushed over to him and enveloped him in a hug. "Hey Kari."

"Taichi, what's going on? Why are you so upset?"

Taichi's furious eyes turned to Yamato, "Where's Mimi?"

Yamato, who had remained silent since Taichi's first outburst, suddenly narrowed his eyes, "Why?"

"I know _you _don't have the brains to pull all of this off." Taichi sneered.

Yamato clenched his fists, "Leave her out of this."

"She's as much to blame as you are!"

"What are you planning to do to her?" Yamato demanded, hand inching towards his blade.

All of the ferociousness suddenly vanished from Taichi's face and a look of devestation appeared in it's place. "What? Yamato... you didn't honestly think I would hurt her... did you?"

Yamato didn't respond, his hand still on the hilt of his sword.

Hikari quickly grabbed her brother's hand. "No, no of course he didn't." She turned to glare at the blonde thief, "You should be ashamed Matt, I can't believe that thought even crossed your mind. You know Taichi loves Mimi."

Yamato's grip on his hilt still didn't loosen and his eyes remained deadly.

The pain Taichi felt was put to the back of his mind as quickly as he could, he would deal with it later... His eyes narrowed again as he hand lightly rested on the hilt of his blade.

"Mimi! I refuse to go anywhere until you tell me what the hell is going on!!"

Yamato closed his eyes for a brief moment, wishing that Taichi hadn't heard... no such luck however. When Yamato's eyes opened again Taichi's face was turned to look at the area Mimi and Sora were standing. Yamato watched the emotions of Taichi's face intently, noting how shock was the first emotion that was processed by his brain.

"Sora?" he murmmered softly.

As though hearing her name being called Sora turned to face them, her eyes widening when they rested on the Prince of Thieves.

"Daisuke?"

Then confusion.

Sora took several steps towards him, unsure. When they were standing in front of each other Sora cautiously placed a hand on his cheek.

Finally, rage. Pure, frenzied, animalistic rage.

Sora eyes narrowed at the exact moment Taichi's did and the hand that had been resting on his cheek was quickly drawn back and returned with full force with a loud, echoing

_**!!SMACK!!**_

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

**me**: WOOT!! IT's over!! IT'S FINALLY OVER!! How'd you guys like the ending? I LOVE it!! But that's because I know what's gonna happen!! MUWAHAHAHAHA!! I love my brain (pats brain on the head)

Brain: ...I'm not YOUR brain...

Davis: Okay, are you smoking something?

me: No, why do you ask? (is standing on head next to a flamingo)

Davis: ... no reason...

me: (grins) REVIEW PLEASE!! Remember... fuzzy yellow phone!! You know you want it!! (waves it around mockingly) LOVE YOU ALL!! LATERZ!!

**CS**


	9. Darkness Before Dawn

**me**: HAVE YOU HUGGED YOUR TAI TODAY!!! (*grins*) I have!! (*hugs brown eyed cutie*)

Anyhoo!! I know I know I know!!! I'm such a jerk!!! I should be roasted over an open fire and have a stake stabbed through my heart for making you guys wait so long…. But let's face it… I AM Evil itself. MUWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!

Davis: She IS!!!! (*cowers*)

Me: OKAY!!! So I want to thank all of my lovely reviewers!!! (to anyone that I didn't reply to, I'm sorry!!! You all get a loofa!!!)

_**Super garurumon**_

_**M M Forever**_

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_**AngelSachiya**_

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_**Surger**_

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_**Happy reader**_

_**Jerseygrl90**_

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_**Crazy With Happiness **_

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_**Haha**_

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_**Squit Ayumin**_

I seriously lurf you all, you are the greatest people EVER!!!!! And yes, you are lurfed!!! It's better than loved and more convenient than ducks (*glomps everyone*) heehee!!

_**Quote of the Month: "**__Sometimes, in order to make something great, you have to get rid of your favorite part." -- My amazing ex-english teacher Ms. Cook_

**I wish to dedicate this chapter to two people:**

**Syd! Who is my source of insanity and my best friend on XD, YOU ROCK GIRLIE!!! **

**And to my grandma who passed away last month but who continues to be my muse even though she's not physically here. Love you!! **

Okeydokie!! I shall no longer continue my blabbing of uselessness!!! ENJOY!!!!

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

_**Last time: **__Good evening everyone, this is the fabulous Henry that you have the pleasure of listening to! I bet you all feel grand. Well Taichi was miserable being cooped up in the Coventry, and really who could blame him? A free spirit like his can't be caged, so Daisuke shrugged off his guard duty and allowed Taichi to leave to get a day of freedom. Meanwhile I had the pleasure of meeting the beautiful Sora Takenouchi and she joined myself, Hikari, Daisuke, and Catherine for breakfast where Catherine presented her with a new wardrobe. Around the same time Jeri stopped by our hideout to reveal some unsettling news to Koushiro; Ken planned to kill his father, and when Takato escorted her home they were ambushed by the Black Squadron and Jeri was taken to the castle by Myotis!!! Well, one thing led to another and Taichi learned of everything that was happening in Ichijouji and returned to confront Mimi and Yamato, unfortunately though Sora was in their presence. Taichi wasn't aware that Sora was staying with us and the two of them reacted badly, in other words Sora slapped our beloved leader for some reason. Wow, just when you think things would've settled down some with Taichi better, you're once again proven wrong. _

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

**The Kamiyas were cursed with the unfathomable need to make everyone happy. **

_"What's up Matt?"_

_The blonde looked up from the marble table top he had been cleaning and shrugged his shoulders in a dismissive manner. "Nothing."_

_Taichi smiled slightly and cocked his head to the side, watching the blonde with sudden interest, an action that did not go unnoticed by the elder of the two. _

"_What?" _

_The brunette followed Yamato's earlier example and shrugged, "Something's bothering you and I was just trying to figure out what it was." _

_Yamato snorted and turned away from his friend, "I don't need your help Tai." _

_Taichi's eyes narrowed just the slightest degree, "No. You're not accepting help because you have this idea in your head that you have to do everything on your own. Idiot." _

_Yamato was taken completely off guard by his younger friend's next actions. One minute the taller of the two was swerving to continue their game of insults, the next Yamato found himself pinned against one of the large tables by both Taichi's arms and his piercing amber eyes. "What the hell Taichi!" _

"_Would you shut up and listen for a second Matt?" _

_Yamato ceased his fruitless struggles upon hearing the distressed tone used by his friend. "Fine. Why have you resorted to violence in order to get me to reveal _my_ business to _you_?" _

_Taichi glared at him, "Yamato you can be such an --" Taichi growled in the back of his throat and jumped away from his rival, turning to leave. "You're not alone anymore okay! I refuse to watch you suffer internally when you have people that care about you enough to help you." Taichi began walking towards the door but Yamato's next statement stopped his progress to the slaves quarters. _

"_Why are you so obsessed with helping me? There's nothing _you_ can do anyway." _

_Taichi paused and spun around, his eyes much softer than before, "Why?" _

_Yamato shook his head sadly, "I told you, it's nothing." _

"_We're not starting this again Matt." The brunette grinned as he jumped onto the nearest chair, "Let me guess…you're hopelessly in love with a certain brown eyed beauty currently residing with us?" _

_Yamato's mouth fell open, "H-How did you --" _

"_Yamato, you're about a subtle as a stampede of drunken horses." _

_Yamato rolled his eyes, "So do you think Mimi --" _

"_Mimi? I thought we were talking about me!" Taichi batted his eyelashes playfully. _

"_You're such an idiot." _

_Taichi's grin could easily be described as giddy as he wrapped an arm around his friend's shoulders, "Don't worry Yamato, she _loooves_ you almost as much as I do." _

**Even if it was at the expense of their own happiness. **

_"Wow Hikari! That necklace is so pretty!" _

_Hikari smiled as she held it by its chain and admired the intricate designs on the circular locket. She glanced around cautiously before turning back to her small audience, "My brother said he stole it from the Queen! He said it looked a lot like something our mother owned and wanted to give it to me. It's my favorite thing in the whole world!"_

_"Wow Kari, it's so pretty!" Takeru grinned from his position at her side. _

_A timid little girl looked longingly at the necklace in Hikari's hands. "Can I.... hold it? Please Hikari! Please, please, please!!" _

_Hikari's smile became strained as she considered the request, "Umm... okay..."_

_The little girl took it in trembling hands, eyes as wide as saucers. "Wow..... it's beautiful."_

_Hikari saw the longing in the slave girl's eyes. The young girl had never owned anything precious before and her entire family had been killed in the Ichijouji raid several years ago. Hikari was fortunate enough to have her brother and Takeru, and all of her other friends...... one trinket -- no matter how valuable -- couldn't replace that love, but maybe it could be a start for someone like her..... _

_"You can have it." Hikari whispered, her heart heavy._

**And although they often wished people would go out of their way to help them as well **

_Taichi glared through the bars of his cell, "What would you know." _

_The old man smiled kindly, "I know that self-mutilation isn't going to make things any better."_

_Taichi gripped the smooth broken piece of tile in his hand as though it were his life-line, "I-It's..." he averted his eyes from the kind stranger, "my blood..... it's the only thing that reminds me that I'm human in this place...."_

_The elderly man held his hand out through the bars of the cell, "You happen to be the most humane person I've ever met. You and your friends are the only people in this place that have any compassion in this beastly place, and it is compassion and love that set apart humans from animals. You have nothing to prove to yourself or anyone else."_

_Taichi's stared at this strange man, then back to the broken piece of tile. His grip on the tile loosened. _

_"Tai... you and your friends have been through more than I myself have been through, and you're all still so young!" The old man shook his head solemnly. This boy, he recalled, had been one of the few positive things about this horrible castle. Such light! Such happiness! Such warmth radiating from his eyes! And now the prince had once again extinguished any hope the slaves had. He lifted his head to meet the cold eyes of the Blood Prince's favorite toy. "You've been tainted by the darkness of this world."_

_"No kidding," Taichi snapped, eyes straying back to the bleeding cuts on his arm. He chuckled, his laugh sounding hollow and dark... the laugh of the prince. "People come to my cell more often than you'd think. Come here to beg me not to kill their relations, to mock me about how they can't believe that I'm the one so many fear!" His grip on the tile tightened again. "But the ones like you are the worst! The people like you that tell me they're on my side, that they want to make things better for my sister or my friends, but who turn around and kick you while you're down!" He had risen to his feet, eyes dark and furious. "What the hell makes you think you're so different from all of the other bastards in this place? Why, out of all the people in this fucking hell hole, should I trust you!?!" _

_The old stranger stared deep into the eyes of the abused youth, seeing a small spark behind the coldness. He was honestly still hoping that someone would come and help him. His hope was still there after all of the evil he had been subjected to._ _The wizened man smiled ever so slightly, the wrinkles on his face becoming even deeper, "Because I want to help you, and because I will succeed."_

**More often than not, they were disappointed. **

_"Hikari calm down."_

_"NO!! How could all of you just stand there!!" _

_The large population of child slaves didn't respond. Some had their heads downcast out of shame, others stared at her, unsure how to answer her question. _

_"We... didn't want to get in trouble.." a small slave finally answered, eyes averted._

_Hikari's eyes went livid. "You.... you.... COWARDS!! ALL OF YOU!!" Hikari was shaking with rage, a sight not many had beheld that honestly frightened them more than the whip. _

_"They're both more than willing to always save your sorry asses_ _from the coil of the whip or a harsh beating, but now that they're the ones in trouble you won't lift a finger to return the favor!?! HOW COULD YOU!!! The King promised that if they stepped out of line one more time they would be sentenced to death!! And for once they weren't the culprits behind this thievery!" She slid to her knees, sobbing quietly to herself before lifting her head and allowing one more lungful of rage escape her mouth, one that shook the slaves to their core. "YOU KILLED THEM!!"_

**And this time, it seemed, was no different. **

**Except that it hurt more, so.... **_**so**_** much more. **

His head had snapped to the side, cheek stinging and instinctively his hand flew towards it as it rapidly changed colors. He felt his eye begin to water from the force the Takenouchi princess had placed behind that slap.... but it didn't account for the single tear that streaked down the other side of his face.

No. The culprit behind his actual tears wasn't the young woman standing in front of him, eyes blazing. Instead the blame settled upon two people that had yet to lay a finger against him, but managed to inflict the greatest damage.

He had never experienced such a blind-sided betrayal before, and the wounds cut him deeply. He could slowly feel all of the lies they told him gather together like chains and attach themselves to the muscle of his heart. The lies then began to squeeze, eroding through the cardiac tissue and allowing pain, depression, and sadness to spill from it in replace of blood. This new form of blood quickly filled his veins and made him want to drop to his knees, reopening scars that took so long to mend.

He briefly wondered what he must've done to make his friends do this to him. What monstrous action had he committed to drive his friends to such lengths to keep things hidden from him?

_**You haven't done anything!! It's **_them_**! It's always **_been_** them!!**_

_Them?_

_**People damnit!! Claiming to be your friends; your family. Then stripping from you any hope and happiness you had!!**_

_That's not true! Look at --_

_**Yutaka? Ken?**_

The optimistic side of Taichi was quickly silenced by the overwhelming evidence against him.

_**You always expect the best! Always believe in the goodness within! Well look how it's paid off! Now the two people…the two people you trusted beyond all reason have gone and done this to you! **_

…_There has to be a reas--_

_**What reason could there be!?!**_

_I don't know damnit!!_

_**Well then…….That just settles everything doesn't it**__._

Taichi lowered his eyes to the floor, thankful that they were still shielded from view by his chestnut locks.

_**We do everything for these bastards and this is what we receive in return.**_

The stinging behind his eyelids was quickly smothered by another emotion.

_**We risk our lives for them on a daily basis, and look! Look what they're doing to you in return! When's the last time you were this….this….**_

"Heartbroken." Taichi whispered to himself.

_**Isn't it about time they felt some of this heartbreak? Some of this pain that you've been feeling from being left completely out of the loop during a time of great need. Shall we let them feast upon what it felt like to let your wounds fester while they ran amuck and changed everything you worked so hard to establish? A little revenge doesn't seem too unreasonable after all of the hell you've been put through.**_

Taichi felt the corners of his mouth rise into a dark, mock-amused smile. It was the same type of grin that the Gothic jesters from the Twilight Carnivals wore; filled with twisted amusement that no one else could quite understand, and behind the sarcasm a hint of insanity was often found.

He chuckled, the bitter sound echoing through the silence of the room the way thunder pierces a quiet meadow.

With every trace of sadness hidden -- not gone -- he turned his attention back to the Takenouchi heiress. The dark smile still in place he finally addressed her, "I'm relieved to see that you're alright Sora.…" his eyes flickered to his fellow thieves over her shoulder before returning just as quickly, "those flyers I noticed in town today had me worried that someone had made off with you during all of the commotion." He smirked as he turned his head completely, looking directly past the Takenouchi girl and towards the two people that let loose this bestial side of him. "You can imagine my genuine surprise when I discovered that, out of the hundreds of people in this cursed city that attended the ball, _I_ was the one convicted for 'kidnapping' you." He calmly reached into his cloak and twirled the MISSING poster between his fingers. His eyes darkened as he allowed the parchment to unravel itself and allow all in the room to become face to face with the flat, two-dimensional face of the Takenouchi princess.

Sora's eyes didn't even glance towards the poster. Her fury was too consuming, too enthralling -- devouring any other emotion or sense that penetrated her minds defenses -- to notice anything other than the vermin standing before her. But what continued to fuel her increasing desire to lash out at him was the blatant fact that his attention was obviously diverted at others.

He chuckled as he continued his pythonic speech, "Of course, I didn't believe it for a second. I insisted to every logical part of my brain that 'My friends would never keep something of this magnitude behind my back', and, despite the doubt in the back of my mind, I convinced myself to give the lot of you the benefit of the doubt. And just look at where my loyalty has gotten me." His voice still held that jester-like amusement, but his eyes betrayed his calm exterior; they were blazing with hell's fire as he precariously stepped around the auburn beauty and advanced towards his comrades.

Sora, rage already boiling within her blood and completely unaccustomed to being treated as anything other than an elite member of the most imperial social societies, grasped his uninjured forearm and spun the Prince of Thieves around to face her again.

The intensity of his eyes was easily matched by the fires in Sora's and she quickly dropped her voice to a low hissing whisper before speaking to him, "You unimaginable bastard. _**You're**_ the Prince of Thieves!?!"

Taichi's smirk slipped from his face and his eyes softened to a certain degree. She wasn't responsible for her existence here being so esoteric, and she most certainly didn't deserve to receive any spite or anger coming from him… or at least he didn't _think_ she did. He really didn't know what to do in this situation except say the only thing he _could_ say, "Yes, I'm the Prince of Thieves."

Sora's fists clenched at her sides, "You lied to me."

Taichi averted his eyes for a moment before swerving them back to hers. She sounded….. crestfallen. Her voice had cracked in that last statement and Taichi suddenly felt extremely guilty, although the reason for it eluded him. "Not _entirely_…," was his intelligent reply.

It didn't take a genius to see the signs of someone losing their temper, but Sora's were particularly obvious; she bit her lip to the point that it drew blood (probably to keep her tears under control), her eyes, behind a glassy slide, were ferocious, and her fists were clenched tight enough to cause them to turn white and visibly shake with suppressed rage. With these signs it was no surprise that Taichi was able to catch her hand before it could make contact with his face again.

Sora's eyes widened for the briefest of moments as she tried to wrest her hand away to no avail. Infuriated, Sora drew back her other hand but Taichi managed to dodge the blow and stop any further violent advances by grasping her wrist with the same hand that held her other one. He couldn't risk injuring his broken arm any further after all.

"**_Let go of me_**."

"Will you hit me again if I do?"

Sora didn't answer and that was reason enough for Taichi to keep a gentle but firm grip on her hands, an almost mocking smile on his face.

Sora, not enjoying this predicament half as much as he was, tried to lurch her hands free again, but only succeeded in pulling him closer. Their close proximity only seemed to enrage Sora further, "Let me go or I _swear_ I'll make this the worst day of your miserable existence."

Taichi smirked darkly again, "What if I told you it already was. I doubt there's much else you could do to make it worse." He chuckled at the truthfulness of this statement before turning to the audience at the door, "Daisuke, escort our…." he paused for the appropriate term, but somehow figured that "captive" or "enemy" wouldn't help the situation any further. "Please escort our _guest_ to the room she's been staying in."

"Oh no you are **not** getting rid of me that easily," she spat. Using every once of strength she could muster she yanked her hands free, "You selfish, lying, egotistic, inconsiderate --"

Taichi rolled his eyes. "We'll talk about whatever this is later, before you run out of synonyms."

"_'Whatever this is'_. Are you referring to how you lied to me and screwed with my emotions to accomplish your own selfish goals?!?"

Taichi's expression turned to one of absolute exasperation and the fatigue he was feeling showed for the briefest of moments before he responded to the Takenouchi, "Sora I _**can not**_ deal with this right now. In case you haven't noticed, I've got enough issues to deal with right now, one of them falling under the category of a possible treason. So could we --"

"You know what _Taichi _forget about it, I'm sure you won't lose any sleep over it." Sora gave him on last withering glare before storming into the rain, head held high.

Daisuke watched as the rain pelted her with buckets upon buckets of water -- soaking her in seconds -- and hesitantly turned back to his leader, "Umm... should I go after her?"

Taichi took a deep shuddering breath and glared at him from the corner of his eye silently willing Daisuke to get out while he still had a chance.

Taking the hint, the mahogany haired thief scurried after her without a second glance into the kitchens where he knew there now existed a strong possibility of spilled blood. That one glance shared by him and Taichi told Daisuke all he needed to know; Taichi's temper was going to erupt into a column of swirling fiery fury that would possibly worry the gods themselves and he wanted to put as much distance between his idol's anger and himself as possible. Taichi had given him that chance and he was going to take full advantage of it. "Sora!! Hey Sora wait up!! Sora!! Ugh… she just _had_ to go in the freaking rain….Sora wait! You might _drown_ in weather like this!!"

Koushiro, who had been standing beside the door as Daisuke came sprinting out resisted the urge to roll his eyes. _Drown_? Honestly Daisuke.

Iori followed his idol's lead and also shook his head out of pity for Daisuke's remaining brain cells. Hiding his small smile he cautiously returned his gaze to the water speckled window they had been staring into for the last several minutes. He was confused to be quite honest, and for young Iori this emotion was one that was totally alien to him. He had absolutely no idea what was going on with Taichi, Sora, Mimi, and Yamato.

When their small group -- Koji, Kouichi, Koushiro, and himself -- learned the spectacular news that Taichi was safe and back amongst them, Koushiro practically ran to check on their young leader. Running and Koushiro were two things that rarely were used in the same sentence together…. much like Catherine and ugly or Daisuke and brilliant. Not _impossible_, mind you, just rare, like this occasion. But when they ran up to the door, soaked and miserable, they were quickly captivated by the almost Shakespearean scene evolving before them; secret relationships, dastardly betrayals, and an epic fight scene beginning to unfold between Taichi and Yamato.

How could they _not_ stop and become a silent audience to this remarkable tale.

However, while he and the twins were clueless to the reasons behind the happenings Koushiro repeatedly whispered to himself "Damnit, I _told_ them. I freaking _told them _this wouldn't work."

Finally Iori gathered enough courage to confront his seething mentor and find out exactly _what_ he had told _whom_.

"Koushiro?" He lightly tapped the redhead's arm and received almost immediate attention.

"Yes Iori?"

"What's going on? Why is Taichi so angry with Yamato and Mimi?"

Koushiro narrowed his eyes, "Yamato and Mimi devised a plan…. And against my wishes they went through with it, hurting more people than helping them."

Koushiro felt like doing nothing more than marching into the kitchens and proclaiming "I TOLD YOU SO!!" to all of the ignorants who refused to listen to him. Of course that would be completely immature and childish -- two words that appeared in a sentence with his name less often than "run", -- and wouldn't help the situation any, especially since it appeared that it was currently building into what was sure to become a fierce battle. _But hey, it would make_ me _feel better_ Koushiro realized bitterly.

For some strange reason that was far beyond his realm of comprehension, despite him being the proclaimed "genius" of the group his word was always disregarded when it came to personal affairs. He wouldn't boast that he was the most social of all the thieves, but he was capable of giving good advice when asked for it, and who knows! If Mimi and Yamato had taken his opinion into their plans perhaps all of these unpleasantries would be a thing of imagination.

"What plan?" Iori asked innocently.

Of course, though, they didn't, and now this whole situation had to be dealt with before Koushiro could break his own bad news to their appointed leader. Lord knew something had to be done about Ken's plan before things got out of hand and Taichi was one Koushiro _knew_ could set things in motion.

The red-haired genius sighed before directing his attention to the younger thieves accompanying him with a tight, grim smile, "I'm afraid that Yamato and Mimi might be accused of treason."

Iori's eyes widened, knowing exactly what punishment was severe enough for such crimes. "W-Why? I don't understand Koushiro, what… what have they _done_?"

"Quite a number of things actually…. All for the sake of Taichi's well-being, or so they said. But in my opinion, keeping Sora and the city's state a secret from Taichi has only made things worse."

Koji silently stepped beside Irori, an inquiring look in his dark, calculating eyes. "What made them think this would lead to success?"

Koushiro shook his head and placed his palms on the stone window sill, a frustrated scowl on his face, "They didn't want to overwhelm him. Completely understandable given his injured state, but a suggestion of mine that they ignored was to tell him at least what was happening on the surface of Ichijouji's problems. That would have sufficed his curiosity enough and not place him into a state of stress….. but Yamato didn't want to run the risk. He was afraid that even that much would give Taichi that ridiculous sublime valiancy that propels him to fix everything. We took a vote on it, and myself, Takeru, and Henry were obviously overruled."

"What about Hikari?" Kouichi demanded.

Koushiro smiled slightly, "You don't miss a thing do you Kouichi." He sighed dramatically and leaned against the door with his arms crossed, "Mimi suggested to keep her out of it. She stated that Hikari would be biased due to Taichi being her brother and would be blinded by her unconditional love for him instead of focusing on the right thing to do in this situation."

"That's ridiculous!" Koji spat.

"So who else was with you when you decided this?" Iori questioned.

"Jyou was the only other person. He agreed with all of the points I brought up but eventually the doctor side of him gave in. His first priority is to make sure we're all in as healthy a state as we can be, and he shared some of the same fears Yamato had. They won, and now Taichi's found out."

The three younger thieves didn't know how to respond to such overwhelming information. To learn that disagreements could snowball into something so colossal was astounding, and for it to happen between the closest members of their organization…..

"So what do we do?" Kouichi asked softly.

"We wait." Koushiro stated matter-of-factly. "We wait until Taichi has taken the message and shoved it into their brains; that he is not to be double crossed even at his most vulnerable state."

Koji rolled his eyes, "Could we at least wait somewhere a little drier?"

TTTTTTTTTTTT

At Ichijouji castle, despite the gloomy atmosphere and depressing view of the city below, the most fantastic prospect of the night sky could be seen through the dark windows, and the Takenouchis, their hearts lined with grief, would often find comfort knowing their daughter was staring up at the same sky…. somewhere.

Lady Takenouchi had taken special care to avoid anything that might remotely remind her of her daughter's absence, even if it put her at an inconvenience; she took the long routes on any of her walks to avoid watching the knights train, she took her meals in her lovely suite to avoid any glimpses of the horses being led back to their stables, and, the most painful of all, avoiding her husband as much as possible. He and Sora looked so much alike… same beautiful crimson eyes and auburn locks… it was so hard to look at him without her thoughts straying to her baby in the hands of a monster!

Which was why she had been spending so much of her time up in her room…. away from the other nobles, away from the King and prince, and…. away from her loving husband. Instead, she chose her company to be the beautiful, twinkling stars that gave her just the slightest trace of comfort. Oh how beautiful it must be to soar through the sparkling heavens and get away from the many terrible realities here on the ground.

But on that dark evening, there were no stars to gaze at.

It was as though the sky could hear her anguished thoughts and morphed to match the sadness she did nothing to hide. Now her attention was solely focused on the rain falling from the black clouds, clouds that, like her heart, were roaring with fury yet crying out in agony. She could feel every ounce of pain those clouds must feel for them to be crying so much, and she could relate.

Nothing was worse than a woman scorned…. but nothing was more heart breaking than a mother lost.

"Toshiko….?"

Toshiko Takenouchi stiffened at the sound of her husband's voice. The voice she once found comfort and warmth from now sounded hollow to her ears.

"Toshiko… my darling… you act as though the world is dying." Haruhiko smiled ever so slightly at his feeble attempts to lighten the dead weight hanging in the air.

"Mine already has."

Haruhiko's small smile vanished off of his wrinkled face at the soft voice. What happened to the lovely, powerful voice of his wife he so cherished? What happened to the optimistic woman he married? What happened to his love? "Toshiko… please…. We're doing all we can to --"

"THEN WHY HAVEN'T YOU FOUND HER!?!" Toshiko spun around to glare at her husband. "Why, with all the men and soldiers you have at your disposal, haven't you brought my baby girl back to me?! WHY!?!"

Haruhiko blinked numerous times before being able to gain control over his voice box again, "Toshiko you're being unreasonab--"

"Don't you DARE accuse me of being unreasonable!" Toshiko stepped up to her husband and jabbed a finger at his chest, "She is your _daughter_ Haruhiko. The priority of returning her here should be above everything else, including the Prince's obsession to capture that blasted Prince of Thieves."

"Now Toshiko you listen to me," Haruhiko gently took her hands and kissed them, "The sooner we catch him the sooner we'll be able to find Sora."

"So you and the Ichijoujis believe that after you catch him he'll talk." Toshiko rolled her eyes, "He took her for a reason Haruhiko, I doubt he'd give up her location even if his life depended on it." She gently took her hands away and walked back over to the window, watching the rain splash against the glass on the window.

"Come now my dear…. that's no way to look at a situation like this. You have to maintain hope." He took her small shoulders in his large hands and turned her to face him, her tear-filled emerald eyes locking with his crimson orbs. "She's so much like you. She has such spirit, such love, such strength." He paused to smile at how much he admired his daughter, "I'm sure, wherever she is, she's giving her captors hell just as I know you would." Toshiko averted her eyes as a small smile graced her lips at the truth of what he had said. "She's strong and she'll make it through this. But in the meantime we must savor all the hope we have, keep it bright within us… just like those stars you love to look at."

Toshiko turned back to the window and whispered softly, "The stars are gone Haruhiko. The sky is black tonight."

Haruhiko's eyebrows drew together at that depressing statement, "Toshiko something troubles you…. something more than just Sora's capture."

Toshiko gazed at the mosque patterns on the spotless floor, "I just have this terrible assumption that I'm never going to see her again…."

Haruhiko chuckled, "My dear you know that can't be true."

"No Haru, this… feeling has been plaguing me for days. I can't shake it. I'm never going to see her again I just know it."

"Preposterous! Toshiko you've been brooding up here in our room since Sora disappeared. I'm sure every worst case scenario has passed through your mind during these last few days and I'm willing to bet never seeing her again is very close to the top of your list of the worst things that could happen. You're just expecting the worst so you won't be disappointed if she comes back in less than perfect condition."

Toshiko turned to once again face her husband, "Perhaps…."

Haruhiko smiled, "My love, perhaps if you join the world again…. maybe this feeling will go away."

Toshiko nodded slowly in response.

"Excellent! I will tell the King to order for another plate at the table for tomorrow evening." Haruhiko smiled as he placed a kiss on his wife's cheek. "I'm sure they'll be thrilled."

Toshiko forced a small smile to her husband as he strolled out of their room, but the moment the door closed her façade slipped.

The feeling would not go away….she knew it wouldn't.

She was never going to see her little girl again, and the worst part of it was… she hadn't the foggiest idea as to why.

TTTTTTTTTTT

Throughout life we are introduced to three different types of people; those above us, those equal to us, and those below us.

It is most certainly not uncommon for those poor unfortunate souls at the bottom rungs of the social ladder to try and imagine themselves in the shoes of those in the life of luxury….. wishing to have what they don't. But not many appreciate what they have because they refuse to acknowledge the suffering souls beneath them. It doesn't matter how poor or how miserable a person might be, there's always someone below them… a little bit poorer and a little bit more miserable.

Mimi Tachikawa would know from experience.

Being both privileged and cursed, she was, at one point or another, condemned to life in all three classes. Ranging from a first class beauty back in her home town to a lowly, insignificant slave girl in Ichijouji castle left Mimi with an everlasting wisdom of how the world works. Gifted with this unique perspective, she knew just how far and how hard she could fall from her comfortable position, but she could also see just how close to the top she was.

But her knowledge didn't end with just the realization of how different each social life was, but extended to what it was like being both a hero and a villain to the Ichijouji people. She had experienced the joy and warmth her heart felt when she presented a kind, deserving family with a small bit of wealth that would allow them to just get by for the next month. There was almost nothing that could compare with the glow in her heart when the civilians thanked her repeatedly, holding their children close to them with an unexplainable essence of gratitude and happiness.

She had also felt the savage fury that enclosed her heart in a vice-like grip when she stole from the selfish nobles of this terrible place. The rage that compelled her to harm these people the same way they were harming those below them with senseless taxing and prosecutions was always rewarded when she watched the fear in their eyes at sword-point. She loved watching them beg for mercy -- willing to sell their own family members if it kept them alive and out of the poor house. How it pleased her to watch them squirm!

Yet, even with all her expertise on different perspectives, she had never before been in a situation like this…. the villain amongst her own kind.

Even worse, amongst her own family.

Her best friend -- the brother she never had or _wanted_ for that matter -- was staring at her as though she had just sprouted horns and began breathing fire. He was furious, that much was painstakingly clear, but he had a deadness in his eyes that portrayed just how deeply they wounded him, even if he was too stubborn to outwardly express it.

His eyes showed all -- a trait that was both useful and terrifying at the same time -- and right now his emotions were spread before her on a silver platter. There was anger… so much anger, there was heartbreak too, branching out from feelings of betrayal, but worst of all Mimi was terrified to see an emotion definitely resembling hatred.

All wrapped together in that one sinister glare.

Mimi, like all unfortunates who find themselves in this position, found herself falling victim to an unusual paradox; her mind screaming at her to run away and hide but her body acting on its own, refusing to move and staying strictly grounded to the beliefs that placed her there. The beliefs that she knew would cause disagreements that would escalade to the moment where she would cross swords with her oldest and best friend.

_Don't think like that Mimi _she told herself sternly. _I'm sure this can all be sorted without the use of weapons… _But even as the thought crossed her mind she was having doubts. _She _would have no problem settling this without violence, but Yamato…. Yamato would be a problem. He would stubbornly say what they did was the right choice, even if Taichi proved to him, without a shadow of a doubt, that they were wrong. Which, given the way things had been working out for them already, was not only possible, but probable.

Mimi realized that, _unintentionally_, she and Yamato had hurt Taichi in possibly the worst way they could have -- attacking his trust in them -- but she preferred to look at the grander scheme of things! He was healing faster…or at least he _was_ before he found out.

It was no secret to any of the thieves that Taichi had a very difficult time trusting people, and his prior ordeals absolutely justified this issue. Mimi knew when she voted alongside Yamato that she was risking the great bond they formed over the many years of their friendship. So why did she do it? Because a friendship with him would mean nothing if he was dead.

According to Jyou and his many tests and "medical nonsense" -- a term used by many of the thieves to describe his drastic change in vocabulary when he forgot he wasn't speaking with professional doctors like himself -- if one thing, one tiny, _irrelevant_, _trivial_ thing had changed during the course of time that spanned between the chandelier falling on Taichi to when he was taken into the Coventry he could very well be six feet under the ground at that very moment. When Mimi had questioned him on this he responded that if a shard of glass had hit him half an inch away from where it hit his lung could have been punctured, or if they chose a different route to get there that was only five minutes longer it was possible that he could have easily bled to death.

Simple, irrelevant, and trivial decisions of fate were what kept their beloved friend and leader with the living.

In other words, Taichi was very lucky to be alive right now, and there was no way in hell Mimi was going to let his condition decline… even if it meant keeping some secrets from him. She would NOT be witness to his weak, vulnerable state again, and she was terrified that he would wind up back in the infirmary if anything happening in the city leaked into the Coventry where Taichi could hear it. She and the rest of the thieves would be thrown into pandemonium once again if Taichi learned what was really going on outside of those beautiful walls.

To hear of all those innocent souls dying based on witch-hunt accusations would cause any ordinary human being to want to do something… and Taichi just happened to be _extra_ordinary. He'd work from dawn into the witching hour trying to set things right again, to help those he could, to redirect the blame from the civilians and back to where it deserved to be directed. He was just that type of person -- an idiot with a heart too big for his own damn good. He'd immediately put all disregard for his own health aside and race into the city to do whatever he could to bring those poor people some comfort.

….And he would've died.

And Ichijouji would follow just as rapidly.

Taichi was _such_ an idiot sometimes. He really had no idea just how much was riding on him. He was Ichijouji's light, their hope, the epitome of the way things _could_ be with a little effort and courage. He was the only one brave enough to stand up for the people without a voice, the only one with enough courage to go up against the most powerful empire on earth with just a ragtag group of warriors. For the civilians to see what this seemingly ordinary teenager could do slowly fed them the strength they needed to go up against the Ichijoujis themselves. He was the heart of the rebellion, the soul of the people, and the spirit of the city longing to be free of corruption and death.

If they lost him, they lost the war.

She needed to get that through his thick skull. He needed to understand the vitality of his position, and she was the only one that could pound it through all that thick hair into his brain.

"Taichi....." Mimi took a step toward her friend but Yamato gripped her hand and pulled her behind him, much to her dismay. "Yamato what are you doing?"

"Not now Mimi." Yamato stated softly, eyes never straying from the brunette's.

Yamato wasn't a fool.

He had seen this rare side of his best friend before, that animalistic gleam in his usually warm eyes. It had never actually been directed _at_ him -- much to his relief --, but he had seen the after-affects of its release and knew that Taichi was a force to be reckoned with when he was _this_ furious.

Normally this level of anger was saved solely for Ken; an anger so violent and dangerous that it often left even Yamato scared out of his mind, but then Taichi would revert back to himself and lock the demon back within the darkness. The very mention of this ferocious hurricane-like force was enough to put Yamato on edge, and there was no way in hell he'd risk Mimi to its awesome, but terrible power.

The protective, soccer-mom like action Yamato took to prevent Mimi from coming anywhere near him caused Taichi's dark smile to return. He chuckled as he crossed his arms over his chest and addressed them, "What's the matter Matty?" He casually cocked his head to the side, "Not _**scared**_ of me are you?"

Yamato, to Taichi's delight, rested his hand on his hilt in response.

Taichi's jester grin broadened. "You flatter me Ishida. Here I was beginning to wonder if you thought I was too weak to put up a fight. After all, there had to be _some _logical explanation for you sneaking around behind my back and lying to more than half of the people here." He smirked as he slowly advanced towards his rival. "Or maybe that wasn't it. Perhaps the idea that I was too incapable to make proper decisions crossed your mind?" Taichi laughed as he circled his blonde rival, completely relaxed and pulsing with dark amusement and fury, Yamato on the other hand had his sword tightly clenched, eyes never leaving Taichi for even an instance.

"No? Well I'll tell you what I think happened Yamato." Amber eyes darkened, "something got in your head and told you that this was your big break! The perfect opportunity to take charge and do things your way without having to worry about my consent."

"What are you talking about?"

Taichi pressed on as though Yamato hadn't spoken, "That, for once, you could call the shots and be the big hero."

"Taichi that's ridic --"

"**IS IT**!?!" Taichi's amusement vanished with those two small words. "Then why would you do this!? Why would you want to do this to me?!" Taichi stopped in front of his rival, his only functional fist clenching and unclenching as his mind debated the topic of hitting him.

"Taichi you don't know what you're talking about." Yamato hissed.

Taichi scowled, "Enlighten me."

Yamato's icy eyes grew darker, as though a veil was cast over them, "You're such an idiot."

Taichi chuckled, "_That's_ your brilliant response? You could've been more original you know, it's not like I haven't heard that one before."

"I wasn't finished Taichi," Yamato hissed, bringing his face inches from the brunette's. "You're an idiot because you think you're this almighty invincible hero who can survive anything and everything. Well guess what Your Highness," Taichi's eyes darkened to a point that they were almost black as Yamato quoted Ken, "you're just as human as the rest of us here."

"Figures you'd bring up one of my faults just to cover up your own." Taichi cocked his head to the side ever so slightly as a satirical smile appeared on his face, "Keep running Yamato, don't worry about your failures catching up with you because when they do you'll have something else to mask over them just like you always do."

"Running and hiding? My, my, my isn't this the most perfect example of the pot calling the kettle blac--" the words on Yamato's tongue froze when he felt a sharp pain on the back of his head. "Ow!"

"Shut up Yamato." Hikari hissed.

Yamato mumbled something under his breath about how he pitied his brother since his girlfriend was tougher than he was.

Hikari on the other hand stood glaring at the pair with enough revulsion to _almost_ make them regret what they were saying to one another. "What is the matter with the two of you?! You two are supposed to be best friends and here you are fighting like a pair of five-year olds." She placed her hands on her hips and Yamato had the vivid impression of his mother standing before him. "And I also demand an explanation for what happened between you and Sora, Taichi. Whatever happened made it seem like --"

"I had no idea she was here?"

"Yes! Exact--… What?" Hikari's arms fell limply to her side as she stared at Taichi in disbelief. Her eyes darted between her brother and Yamato for a few minutes before her hand flew to her mouth, eyes widening at the sudden revelation that hit her. "You're joking."

Taichi laughed bitterly, "Yes because this is _definitely_ a laughing matter."

Hikari swerved to look at Taichi completely, "What's going on?"

Amber eyes became even more menacing as they narrowed further, "Mimi and Yamato have been lying to us; they failed to inform _you_ that they were performing many actions without _my_ knowledge, and this situation leads me to question their loyalty."

Hikari went slack-jawed as she stared at Yamato, then back to Taichi, "You.... didn't know?"

Taichi glanced at her and in that instant Hikari saw the many emotions he was desperately trying to submerse within himself. It was a tactic she always advised against, keeping things locked up had a tendency to build and grow until they were unleashed tenfold, but she understood in this instance that it was best not to let Yamato and Mimi know just how much they were affecting him. "No," was his quiet reply.

Hikari, always the one with the most calming temperament, found, shockingly, that her hands were shaking as she unsheathed her blades, "I'm as much a victim in this as you," she replied to Taichi's questioning look, "I won't stand by and let this dishonor… this...this _crime_ against our family go unpunished."

"Crime?!? We were trying to help you!" Mimi shrieked as she stepped beside Yamato, her daggers resting in her hands.

"And you did such a wonderful job," Taichi replied scornfully, his hand resting on the hilt of his blade.

"We didn't want you to try and fix the happenings in the city. You were practically on your death bed after the raid at Ichijouji castle!" Yamato stated furiously.

Mimi nodded, "And Jyou said --"

"I _**don't care **_what Jyou said!" Taichi exclaimed as though he had been dying to say that for days. "You two don't get it! What good has come out of keeping things from me!?"

"……"

Mimi's eyes were steely as she spoke for her boyfriend, "You're alive."

The silence left over from this statement was deafening, but it was soon broken by that hollow, dark laughter of Taichi's. "If you can call _this_ living." He shook his head at their ignorance, "Here's an idea, how about Kari and I lock the two of you in separate rooms and see how long you last. You won't know anything happening outside, you're not allowed to leave, and your forced to live with the knowledge that your friends are the ones keeping you there. Does that sound like an enviable experience?"

"But at least you were getting better!"

"How the hell would you know?!?"

"Maybe because you're _standing_!"

"You should be grateful Tai!"

Taichi's eyes swerved to Yamato. Another stunned silence filled the air but the tension surrounding the area grew thicker and more apprehensive. "Grateful?" Taichi smirked, "Ah yes, grateful. Here, allow me to rephrase my previous statement. Thank you both so _very_ much for **STABBING ME IN THE BACK**!"

It was with those words that all hell broke loose in the kitchens.

Mimi and Hikari leapt at each other like feral cats, blades extended like claws as the two females tried every maneuver to bring the other down. They weren't necessarily trying to hurt their opponent -- they _were_ friends after all -- but each was siding on opposite sides of the line this time and there was no backing down until either someone lost or surrendered.

Taichi and Yamato on the other hand were willing to go to almost any length to knock some sense into the other, even if it meant blood had to be drawn.

Yamato figured he had a small advantage due to Taichi's incapacitated arm and he planned to use Taichi's disadvantage as much as he could.

He shot his sword forward, but Taichi easily countered it, allowing the metal to clash and hiss against each other. It didn't take much brainpower to know what kind of strategy the blonde would be using, obviously he would be attacking his left side since it appeared to be weaker.... but appearances were often deceiving as Taichi was about to prove.

Yamato charged at his rival, allowing their swords to connect before he pivoted behind the brunette. He maneuvered his sword so that it was horizontal to Taichi's neck, but Taichi ducked out of the headlock before the metal could connect, dropping to all fours. Taichi grinned as he aimed a kick at Yamato's knees, causing the blonde to stumble backwards and allowing Taichi the opportunity to jump to his feet, ramming the hilt of his blade into Yamato's chest.

Yamato caught himself before his back connected with the floor, then, using the momentum from his fall, swung his legs at Taichi's ankles, but the agile brunette jumped over them. Yamato was back on his feet in seconds and charged his friend again, this time with a bit more caution in his step.

When their swords crossed again he kneed Taichi in the stomach and grasped him by his injured arm when the brunette doubled over. Taichi hissed and glared fiercely at his rival for using such an unorthodox method to gain the upper hand in a battle. He pushed himself away from the blonde, deciding to discreetly arm his injured side on the likelihood that Yamato would try a similar approach. He quickly moved his left wrist to grasp the knife he hid within his sling and clutched it in his left hand.

"Tiring Taichi?"

Taichi smirked as he skillfully spun his sword in his hand, "Wishful thinking Yamato," he chuckled as Yamato began advancing on him again.

Yamato stopped his approach at the last possible moment and pivoted to the side of his friend. Taichi noted the change and quickly spun to meet the oncoming blade aimed for the side of his head. Their blades clashed against each other with deadly precision, each connection, block, and swipe looking almost rehearsed to the large crowd of onlookers.

The skill between the two strongest thieves commanded silence from the rest of their gang, the only sounds in the normally busy kitchens were the constant hissings of metal scraping metal.

Taichi smirked as an idea came to mind. He watched as Yamato drew his arm back to clash his sword against his and during that brief moment Taichi ducked. The sword soared over his head harmlessly and Taichi spun around to spring to his feet behind the blonde.

Yamato, caught off guard spun to face him…. only to be met with a sword at his neck. Yamato swore softly at the triumphant gleam in his rival's eyes, but found himself smirking as well.

Taichi looked confused for a moment before realizing what Yamato was so happy about; Taichi's left side was completely unprotected.

Yamato twirled the hilt of his sword in his hand and knocked Taichi's sword away from him. Taichi tried to jump back, but Yamato caught his injured wrist and twisted it so Taichi's back was facing him.

"God damnit Ishida!!" he hissed as he choked back a yelp of pain.

Yamato smirked, "Looks like I won this round."

"You cocky son of a -- aahh!" Taichi's fury peaked when he felt his arm muscles scream in protest. He quickly grasped the hilt of the small knife he had been holding and plunged it into Yamato's hand.

Yamato withdrew his hand with a shout of startled pain. "What the hell!?!" He stared at the top of his hand in shock, watching as blood pooled around the metal sticking into his flesh.

Taichi smirked as he used Yamato's distraction against him. Taichi quickly snatched his blade from the ground and swung it against Yamato's with such force that it was knocked from his hand, flying across the room before skidding to a halt at the far end of the room. Yamato stared at him, his mind refusing to register that he was unarmed, and Taichi used this stilled mobilization to knock him onto his back, where he pointed his sword at his neck.

Taichi won. There was no doubt about it.

The Prince of Thieves continued glaring at his blonde rival until that horrible clawing sensation filled his chest again.

"Grateful." He scoffed, his anger beginning to evaporate as the clawing became more intense.

Yamato's glare softened as well when he noticed how Taichi's confidence had escaped him. "Tai..."

Taichi raised a hand and turned his gaze away from his best friend, allowing his eyes to turn toward the tile surrounding his feet, "....I still can't believe you thought I would hurt her...."

Yamato felt a wave of guilt crash against him at his previous behavior when Taichi had first made his presence known in the kitchens. "Taichi I didn't --"

Taichi threw his sword against the ground inches from Yamato's head. "SHUT UP Matt!!" His anger was back. "Why do you think things between us have gotten so bad?!? You don't listen!" Taichi backed away from him, glaring. "Only three people could see that I was miserable and you want to know why? Because they _listened_!…. Which is more than I can say about you _or_ Mimi." His last statement left a coldness in the room that no one could explain. It felt as though a ghost had passed through everyone in the kitchens, leaving them soulless and freezing.

"The two of you have henceforth been suspended from your higher statuses." Taichi announced. He glanced at Koushiro, Jyou, Takeru, and Hikari, "I don't suppose there will be any objections?"

The eldest thieves said nothing as judgment was passed on their friends. It was actually a pretty lenient punishment for crimes of this magnitude, but Hikari got the feeling that Taichi wasn't through with those two yet…. it was only a matter of discovering the perfect punishment.

Taichi returned his attention to Yamato and Mimi, looking every bit like an arbiter announcing a death sentence. "I want the two of you to go directly to my room. Don't talk to anyone, don't stop, and don't make any detours. If you two aren't there when I'm through here," he knelt down to grasp his sword and spun it skillfully, lowering his voice to a growl, "then you better hope to the gods that I don't find you."

Yamato, still sprawled on the floor, slowly rose to his feet. For a moment he didn't move, he simply stared at his long-time rival and best friend. It was as though a silent conversation was said between the duo, a conversation that only they could understand due to the bond between them; the bond of brothers.

No one knew what was being said, hell, even Yamato and Taichi probably didn't, but in that moment of tense silence Yamato understood one thing….. their friendship would survive, but the trust within that friendship was fatally wounded. A long, tiring road lay ahead of him to regain that trust, but he would be willing to walk it. Their bond was worth it.

Yamato was the first to break the connection as he turned to Mimi, who nodded and walked beside her boyfriend. "Taichi?" Tears slid down her cheeks when Taichi refused to meet her gaze. "Taichi… I'm so _so_ sorry that we hurt you. I still believe we did what was right, and I won't take it back, but I want you to know that we did what we thought was necessary because we lo--"

"Your apology is accepted." Taichi stated, eyes still not meeting hers.

Mimi turned to Yamato at the curt interruption, an almost pleading look in her eyes. Yamato gave her a soft smile and gently took her arm, "Come on Meems."

Mimi cast one last hopeful look towards Taichi, praying against everything that he would turn to them. That he would tell them this was all a huge misunderstanding and they could all be one big happy family again.

He didn't.

And as the duo got closer to the exit their footsteps sounded more and more like death tolls. The people standing in the doorways to watch the confrontation stepped away from them, refusing to meet their eyes as though the couple carried some sort of unwanted disease.

Yamato and Mimi paused in the corridor and both turned back to meet all of the faces staring back at them, but the one person whose eyes they didn't see were the ones that they wanted to see the most. With small smiles aimed towards the other thieves they silently shut the doors to the kitchens.

With the mutinous couple vacant from the room the tension only grew thicker, each thief wondering if they should break the silence or remain the silent onlookers they had been for the last half hour….. had it really only been that long? It felt more like years had gone by.

No one had any idea of how to approach this situation since, normally, the Thieves were a tightly knit family that barely had any arguments. Teasing, yes. Disagreements, yes. But never anything of this magnitude that had to be solved with swords rather than words. The stillness was unbearable as everyone waited on baited breath for someone to break the suffocating silence. Finally, after what felt like years rather than minutes, Koushiro walked across the threshold until he was standing beside his friend. Koushiro smiled warmly and placed a firm hand on Taichi's shoulder, squeezing it affectionately. Taichi, however, didn't turn to look at him, keeping his gaze directed at the floor. Koushiro's smile slowly slipped and he sighed, allowing his hand to drop back to his side. "I'm so sorry Taichi..."

Taichi didn't allow his gaze to stray, "You know.... I always expect this sort of treatment from people on the outside...... civilians, soldiers, nobles…..people trying to take what they can from me without any worry about the consequences….but I never, not in my wildest dreams, expected Yamato and Mimi to try to take away the few things I still cherish… my leadership and my freedom.

Koushiro nodded solemnly, "I blame myself for all of this. I could've stopped it; I had the opportunity, I have the authority, I could've found enough people to disagree with this idea. I completely understand if you want to suspend my authority as well…."

Taichi lifted his head and stared at the red head. "You're kidding right?" Koushiro didn't respond and Taichi's mouth curved into a smile. "Izzy…. You really think this is all _your_ fault?" Koushiro lifted his head suddenly as a familiar -- and missed -- sound filled the quiet atmosphere. Taichi was _laughing_ at him. Laughing! Real, sincere laughter! God, how long had it been since the thieves had heard that sound?

Taichi grinned at his friend, "Izzy.... this is _not _your fault. If anything I should be thanking you for sticking up for my well being..... it's more than Mimi and Yamato did for me."

"Tai." Hikari slowly approached her older brother and took his hand in hers. "I don't agree with what Mimi and Yamato did, but.... they wanted you to get better. They went about it the wrong way..... but in their hearts…. it was the right thing to do at the time."

"The right thing to do? I'll keep that in mind when I send them to Algeria." Taichi smirked.

Hikari glared at her brother, "Tai, please be reasonable, they were just trying to help."

Taichi rolled his eyes, "Yes, and a lot of good it did."

Koushiro quickly stepped in between the siblings and addressed Taichi once again, "Whether it did any good or not is debatable, but it doesn't alter the fact that there are matters here that need to be attended to, including what punishment you are going to sentence to the group of thieves that committed treason, myself included, and --"

"Koushiro the only two that will be punished are the two leading this betrayal. I can more or less figure out the reasons behind everyone's decision, and Mimi and Yamato's are the only ones I can't understand and they will be dealt with accordingly."

"Do I dare ask what you are considering an appropriate punishment?" Hikari asked, her large eyes pleading with Taichi to not make it too severe.

"Well I did just mention Algeria, Hikari." Hikari glared at him in response. "Alright, alright I'm just kidding…. sort of. Anyway I'm just striping them of their higher statuses, for now. But I assure you whatever I come up with won't be _too_ terrible."

Hikari visibly relaxed and gave him a small smile. "Good."

"I'll tell you what's good my liege," Henry suavely wrapped an arm around Hikari's shoulders, "seeing you completely... errr.... _virtually_ unharmed!"

Taichi smiled, "It's good to see you Henry."

Henry easily sidestepped the other two thieves and clasped Taichi's uninjured hand, "Good to see you too my friend," he lowered his voice before adding the next part, "otherwise I'm afraid your sister would've castrated me for allowing you to leave earlier."

Taichi chuckled, "Believe it or not Henry, you're not the first person who's told me that. But I'm wounded that my sister's fury was the only thing that made you hope for me to come back! Did no one just miss me?"

"I wouldn't flatter yourself _your highness_." The thieves surrounding Taichi quickly parted to see who dared insult their leader, "I'm sure they would've found another foolish street rat to take your place without too much difficulty. The lot of you are idiots after all." Yutaka smirked as he joined the small crowd.

Taichi narrowed his eyes at the dastardly figure of the Ichijouji soldier. "Funny Yutaka, the same strand of words can be used to describe your kind as well." He smirked as he turned to the spymaster who was standing next to him. "Those damn Ichijouji soldiers need to be exterminated, wouldn't you agree Henry."

"Absolutely your Highness." Henry smirked, drawing his blade and pointing it at the soldier's neck.

"Now, what, may I ask, has brought you to our humble abode you double-crossing snake?" Taichi growled.

Yutaka glared at the glistening sword hovering just above his Adam's apple, then calmly placed his palm on its glistening face, lowering it until it was parallel to Henry's thigh. "Hmph. I come bearing important information --"

"If it's veritable." Koushiro added calmly.

Yutaka glanced at him, "Lovely to see you too Koushiro, did you ever visit that doctor I told you about to get your ego deflated?"

"Well after watching how the results had no affect on you, I figured I'd find a better doctor before taking that step." Koushiro replied coolly.

Yutaka chuckled before turning back to Taichi who did nothing to hide the appraising look he sent Koushiro's way, "As I was saying, I've learned some promising information that you might be interested in hearing."

"By all means, please continue." Taichi replied.

Yutaka grinned as he lifted himself onto one of the large tables they were located next to, making sure to show the other thieves just how much he respected them by proclaiming his self-importance. "The Prince is planning to host a public bonfire of all those accused of being in liege with you, my prince, for the enjoyment of the nobles and the people. As I was telling Henry, it's sure to be one hell of a bonfire." He smirked at the enraged flare that flashed through Taichi's intense eyes. "The Prince believes that you and the other thieves won't be able to resist the hero role you've placed yourself in and will come to rescue their poor _innocent_," he clasped his hands together and allowed his lip to tremble, "souls from the those big, bad flames." He smirked as he watched this piece of information be digested by the thieves before him. Each had their own reactions, as he expected, but he had to admit that the combined warning signals pooling off the thieves was a particularly lovely experience to feel. Oh how he enjoyed pressing peoples' buttons.

He leaned forward, resting his hands on his knees as he stared down the leader of this hopeless cause before addressing him once again. "And he'll be waiting with his many armies to finally have _you_ in his clutches." He emphasized the point by grabbing the front of Taichi's shirt and dragging him forward slightly. Licking his lips as though he tasted something deliciously sweet he chuckled before whispering softly, "and of course I'll be there to watch."

Taichi's mouth twisted into a snarl and, in one swift motion, grasped Yutaka's wrists and threw him to the floor. "You sick son of a bitch!" He roughly kicked the spy in the ribs before all of the other thieves gathered around him, eager to partake in treating the pratty Ichijouji soldier like a piñata. "Get him out of my sight." Taichi hissed.

"With pleasure." Henry grinned sadistically. Taichi watched as all but Koushiro, Hikari, Takeru, and Jyou raced out of the kitchens, dragging Yutaka with them while he protested and shouted the entire way.

Taichi irritably brushed off his shirt where Yutaka's hands had been, as though the very thought of a single skin cell belonging to that backstabber remaining anywhere near him disgusted him immensely.

"I don't understand _why_ you won't just get rid of that… that… _creature_, Taichi." Hikari stated furiously.

"Kari you _know_ why I can't… not yet anyway." Taichi sighed and crossed his arms over his chest, leaning against the table, "We need him, no matter how much I _hate_ the cocky little..." he made a strangling motion with his hands.

Jyou adjusted his glasses, "Let's hope we won't need him much longer then."

Koushiro nodded before taking a deep, calming breath, preparing himself to break his own bit of bad news to their obviously exhausted friend. "Taichi." He bit his lip, fearing his voice might tremble. "... I'm afraid I have one more piece of information you won't like...." Koushiro stated hesitantly.

Taichi laughed as he turned his attention to the flustered red-head, "Geez, I'm gone for one day and the entire world collapses." He smiled slightly at his own joke before nodding for Koushiro to continue.

Koushiro fumbled with his hands as he tried to find the best place to start, "Jeri came to see us today...."

"Oh? How is she?" Taichi asked, smile slipping from his face as the direction of the conversation went down a road Taichi already wasn't liking.

"Umm... not good actually..... You see, she overheard Ken say something...." Koushiro said very softly. By now Taichi had gone as stiff as a board. Koushiro was having difficulty _talking_. That was a sure sign he was about to announce something along the lines of "Your little sister has just been diagnosed with the Plague" or "Guess whose at the door!! Myotis and his Black Squadron! Ooh! Lookie! I think they brought the right size for your noose this time!"

"Oh man I don't like where this is going...." Taichi muttered to himself.

"Jeri… well…. heard Ken mention the idea…."

"Come one Izzy, it can't be _that_ bad." Hikari strained a smile to give Koushiro that last ounce of confidence needed to continue.

Koushiro closed his eyes, "Ken mentioned the idea of … of killing his father."

Koushiro opened his eyes just in time to watch the color completely drain from Taichi's face, "Tai are you okay?" Taichi didn't respond as a wave of icy terror crashed against him, causing him to lose his grip on the table. His knees suddenly felt shaky and his breath hitched in his throat, causing him to stumble and drop to all fours. Jyou, with the reaction skills of a situation-trained doctor raced towards his friend and grabbed his shoulders and lifted him into a sitting position. "Tai! Taichi are you okay?!" Hikari screamed as she shoved passed Jyou to place her hands on his cheeks.

"I'm fine damnit!" Taichi growled.

"Obviously not!" Jyou reprimanded, kneeling in front of his friend. Jyou studied the way Taichi's chest heaved for breath, how his shoulders shook with effort, how his hands gripped the tile below him. "Taichi you need to go to the infirmary **now**."

Taichi glared at him, "No."

Jyou narrowed his eyes, "I'll drag you there if I have to."

"**No**, not yet." His voice was finalizing. The news Koushiro had delivered had obviously shaken Taichi to a degree that caused him to place his personal health at the bottom of his priority list. "Conference. My room. **Now**."

TTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Ken sighed dramatically as his eyes scanned over the table of important nobles.

A perfect afternoon completely ruined. Well….. perfect was an overstatement; all the prince had been doing for the last two weeks was practicing with his blade while trying to ignore the searing pain coming from his unhealed wounds as he pushed his limitations. Not his favorite way to spend a day, but it was the most productive in the long-run; the sooner he was back to his full strength the sooner he could continue his search for Taichi.

Instead, however, he was _here_.

He instantly damned all the architects who built this room of absolute vexation.

The secret audience chamber was, without a doubt, the most poorly constructed room in the entire castle; it's location, for starters, was dreadful. It had at one point been an armory where the weapons of injured soldiers would rest until the men would either pass on or recover. Due to its obvious unimportance the room was located one floor above the dungeons, which meant Ken had to tread down several flights of stairs and walk through a maze of hallways before encountering the room his father _insisted_ on using for the most private of meetings.

The second, and most aggravating quality in Ken's opinion, was the size of the room; it was small, _too_ small. Ken prided himself on being taller than the average male his age; it gave him the advantage of having an extra ounce of menace to his already menacing presence, but in this case it infuriated him. The room was barely tall enough for the average male, since it's purpose wasn't built to sustain meetings of this sort, and many of the occupants would bump or scratch their heads against the ceilings or the splintering wooden support beams. But the fun didn't end there! The room didn't just lack on the height level, but also surface area. A small round table could barely fit in its cramped walls, and having eight or so grown gentlemen as well as his father and himself left the overall space severely diminished.

At the present moment he and his father were shoulder-to-shoulder in their termite infested wooden chairs that were set apart from the cluster around the table. The nobles were all but sitting in each other's laps as they sweated like dirty pigs in the rapidly warming room. And yet, despite this less than appealing visual image they managed to retain the proper behavior of all nobles in the presence of his high-and-mighty father.

All were hanging on his father's every word and staring at him with an almost god-like appreciation.

Maggots.

Ken sighed inwardly and rested his chin on his palm. Why must a brilliant young man like himself be subjected to these incapable flesh eaters? There was no loyalty in these idiots, all Ken could see was the dollar signs in their eyes. They simply pretended to love their King because he filled their coffers.

Ken chanced a glance at his blubbering oaf of a relation: Tired eyes highlighted by heavy purple bags (_Lovely_), wheezing breath rattling in his lungs _(annoying as hell), _and a voice that carried through the tiny room, but lacked that vociferous quality that once demanded attention and always received it.

Basically his father was a freaking carriage wreck waiting to happen, but the poor bloke was still as oblivious as ever. He still believed himself to be unstoppable, that these nobles still worshiped the ground he walked on, that he could still take on any man in battle even if he were twice as young as the beloved King.

Poor misguided fool.

Ken almost felt bad about what he planned to do. Placing himself against his father was equivalent to Ken going up against a mentally disabled toddler; the Ichijouji prince could see no obstacles standing in his way from ripping the King's candy away from him, pushing him onto his back, and kicking him senseless like a broken doll. It was too easy! His father's health was already compromised and an untimely death was to be expected, Ken already had a number of powerful followers at his disposal, and the capture of the Prince of Thieves with him in command was eminent.

Everything was going perfectly and Ken had to cover his broad grin with his hand to shield his obvious excitement with the way things were turning out.

_Let's see I'll plan my coronation for next weekend and that should give that idiot priest a chance to get all of his holy crap prepared. My wedding to that ungrateful runaway wench can be held a few days afterward and Taichi's execution will follow shortly. Or _he thought gleefully _maybe on the same day as my wedding…_

"(cough) Have we (cough cough) reached an (cough) agreement?" The King wheezed.

Ken was thrusted out of his pleasant musings when one of the nobles scraped the legs of his chair across the stone floor with the irritating fingernails-on-a-chalkboard kind of screech.

"Y-Yes my liege." A noble -- Eiichi Hama -- stumbled from his chair, trying to squeeze around the other members of the King's private council. Ken watched this small man stumble about and grinned at the poor man's misfortune. Eiichi was a small man, probably only a few years older than himself, and he found himself in this powerful position after his father -- Koyoto Hama -- was brutally assassinated on the grounds that he was conspiring against the Ichijoujis. No proof was found but the man was dead and life goes on, and now stands this interesting piece of work; skinny as hell and all arms and legs, making his journey to the front of the room very awkward and -- in Ken's opinion -- quite amusing. He had dirty blonde hair that was cropped evenly on his head and a beard and mustache that matched his full head of hair.

_My gods they'll let anyone in a secret council these days. _the prince chuckled to himself quietly.

Once free from his cramped confinement Hama mopped his sweaty forehead with a handkerchief and removed a scroll from under his arm. His breath regained, the noble unrolled the parchment which revealed the Ichijouji crest to the two royals (and a ring of dark areas on the paper that made Ken's stomach quench with disgust), and calmly cleared his throat. "It has been decreed by his Royal Highness Osamu Ichijouji -- King of Ichijouji, Conqueror of the free world, and Ruler of all creatures from the mountains of Infinity to the ocean of Spire -- that a new food tax be issued on the residents of Ichijouji." Eiichi Hama glanced over the paper to meet the eyes of the King, and, in that brief moment Ken saw something truly interesting…. spite? Disgust? The prince found a dark smile curve the corners of his lips as he made a quick mental note to speak with this noble after the meeting...

Hama cleared his throat again before returning his eyes to the decree and continuing, "The King proclaims that one half of all food purchased in Ichijouji markets will be surrendered to Ichijouji soldiers. Extra consumption to superior armies, such as the Black Squadron, will allow better performance and faster results." With his job completed Hama carefully made his way back to his seat and squished himself between the two large nobles on either side of him.

"Let's hope so, our main priority should be trying to capture that damn Prince of Thieves." Ken added maliciously.

The King shot his son a sharp look and lowered his voice drastically, "Ken, chasing after your little runaway isn't the sole purpose of our army's existence. There are other matters that need to be attended to."

Ken gritted his teeth, "_Taichi's_ existence is the sole reason for the many problems we're experiencing _now_, father."

The King's mouth formed into an amused grin, "A thought which has already occurred to me and a matter I've already taken into my own hands."

_Yes because you've done such an amazing job with that already. _Ken thought scornfully as his father returned his attention to the council.

"Gentlemen," all movement ceased, "my son has just brought up an interesting point to the well-being of our kingdom." The King rose shakily out of his makeshift throne, grasping the armrests until his knuckles turned white in order to summon enough strength to perform the simple action. "Let us think for a moment about all of the misfortunes plaguing our beautiful city; lack of money," the King lifted a finger as he counted off the list of dreadful occurrences, "lack of food, and lack of respect from our citizens which results in a lack of trust and loyalty from the disgusting rodents. Are we all in agreement?" Nods followed his proclamation. "I have spent quite a number of sleepless nights trying to uncover the source of these issues and my son is correct about one thing…." the King paused a moment as another coughing fit erupted from his weakening lungs, "the (cough cough) Prince of Thieves (cough) is the (cough cough) cause of (cough) all of this!!" The King stepped back and grasped one of the armrests as he hacked his lungs out, Ken having to bite the inside of his cheek to keep his glee hidden. After all, if any of the nobles saw his overwhelming joy over the obvious worsening of his father's condition there might be reason to suspect him if anything…. _unfortunate_ were to happen.

Once the King's coughing was under control he plopped into his throne, chest heaving and breaths rasping in his throat. "He…. must be stopped…. otherwise our delicate…. civilization… will be demolished. Which is why…. I have brought…. two specialists…. to deal with him."

Ken felt his heart plummet into his stomach. _Specialists? What the-- __**Specialists**__?!?_

The King quickly regained his breath and addressed the council, "The Prince of Thieves has been a thorn in our country's side for the last four years, and the reason his reign of terror has lasted so long is due to his incorrigible habit of avoiding justice. He's like a puff of smoke; able to disappear just as you have him in your grasp, and disappear _completely_. No signs of his whereabouts, no clues as to whom the rest of his gang members are, and no way of tracking him. A puff of smoke that's gone just like that," he snapped his fingers to emphasize his point. "This unique ability to make our soldiers look like amateurs is one of the main reasons he has become so dangerous. He avoids arrest without an ounce of difficulty and lives to commit another felony the next day! And all the while he gathers more followers!"

Ken narrowed his eyes _Idiot. Taichi's most dangerous quality is not in his evasion of our moronic guards, but in his manipulative capabilities. _Ken clenched his fists as his father continued to ramble. _That bastard could convince a man whose shirt had been stolen that he stole the shirt off of his own back even while Taichi's wearing it. Thanks to this… talent, if you will, he continues to gain more and more allies to fight against us, and soon we'll be outnumbered… and outmatched. _

"Now, as our armies continue to search for him our economy has been depleting rapidly. None of the nearby farms and villages wish to trade with us on the off chance that the Prince of Thieves might intercept them and rob them blind. The Prince of Thieves is a major cause in all of our problems, but until he is caught we must focus on rebuilding the economy so we are not driven into the ground. All of our attention has been on searching for this nuisance, and although we are justified in doing so we must place this difficult task into more capable hands. Hands that were built for this area of expertise and who excel in it, so that we might concentrate on refining our grand society back to what it was before that accursed Prince showed up on our doorstep."

Murmurs of agreement followed this statement, "Who exactly are you proposing to take on a great task such as this, Your Highness?"

The King smiled darkly, "Gentlemen, allow me to introduce you to…." the small wooden door banged against the rock walls unceremoniously, causing the weak hinges to break and send the door crashing into the hard flooring. As dust from the centuries soared into the air and the nobles groped for their handkerchiefs to shield their mouths and noses from the tainted air, Ken stared into the mess and could vaguely make out two silhouettes standing in the doorway.

One was obviously female based on the hourglass figure that was notable even through the dust and the other was taller, with a slender but muscular build whom Ken automatically assumed was a male.

"Good evening your Majesty."

Ken narrowed his eyes at the velvety voice that resounded over the unnecessary coughing the nobles were still dramatizing. Without having to look at the voice's owner Ken already suspected his plans were in danger; the voice was one that belonged to a seductress, a manipulative bitch that was willing to do nearly anything to get whatever she wanted. But that wasn't all, in that one sentence she revealed how cunning she was -- choosing her words carefully. Ooh, these two were going to be a problem unless he took care of them. Soon.

"The Devil Hunters." The King was smirking as he finished his introduction. "Professional bounty hunters that I have hired for the specific task of hunting down and capturing the Prince of Thieves and any of his followers."

"And capture them we will." The female of the Devil Hunters stepped into the crowded room and leapt onto the round table the nobles were still seated at.

Ken was _positive_ he wasn't the only one in the room whose eyes had been drawn to her the moment she made her features noticeable. She was quite stunning in a gothic vampiric way; her skin was pale -- white would be a better description -- to the point that she looked either like a walking corpse or someone who had just fallen into a giant bowl of powder and refused to wash it off. She had long dark brown hair that cascaded to the middle of her back and a few strands were decorated with red and black beads. She wore a blood red strapless shirt and a black skirt that was long along her left leg but cropped short on her right, giving a perfect view of her knee-high black heeled boots. _Among other things _Ken noted smirking. Her weapons weren't visible but Ken was sure she was equipped with numerous devices of death and destruction based on her sadistic smile and dark, calculating eyes.

Slower, but with just as much grace, the male of the Devil Hunters made his presence known as he joined his partner on the table. He had the same chalk-like skin but atop his head was a mop of black shaggy hair that appeared never to have been combed. He wore a long black trench coat dotted with many different hidden pockets over his black shirt and slacks. A sword hung at his hip and a bow was slung at his back equipped with a quiver of arrows. His face immediately struck Ken however; his face was impassive as he glanced around the room -- no doubt looking for anything to occupy his time whilst his partner did all of the talking -- but his eyes. God damnit they were the exact shade as….

"Taichi's." Ken hissed.

The girl's eyes snapped to him. She studied him for a moment before she broke into a grin, bright red lips contrasting sharply against her white skin and teeth. She said nothing as she turned back to the King, leaving Ken in painful suspense about what had caused her sudden loss of composure. "My brother and I are honored to meet the infamous Ichijouji King and are eager to help you, My Lord."

The King clapped his hands together, "Excellent! Excellent! Gentlemen these…. people are Lillian and Damian Devian, the most notorious bounty hunters outside of our borders."

"You flatter us your Highness." Lillian bowed her head ever so slightly, "We were so pleased to learn you specifically requested us to assist you with your," she smirked again, "_pest_ problem."

The King beamed, "Yes, the mission has officially been passed to you. I expect nothing but the best results." His eyes darkened slightly, "otherwise I'm sure you realize the punishment that awaits you."

Lillian smirked, "Trust me my Lord, failure isn't even an option." She leapt off of the table and stood before the two royals, "you'll have your thief with a leash around his pretty little neck. Soon….." She chanced a sidelong glance at Ken and her smirk broadened, "Very soon."

TTTTTTTTTTT

Ignorance is bliss, or at least that was the case with Mai on that stormy night.

Mai was in a bitter mood that evening due to all of the freaking nuns forcing her to clean all of the dishes from that evening's supper.

'_How much can a bunch of old ladies eat' _was the thought that came to her when the Head Mother asked her to do this tedious task, so of course she agreed, believing that she'd be done with her chores in minutes time and then she could go bother her favorite thieves..

Ohhh how little she knew….

_No wonder some of the Sisters were snickering, _Mai scowled as she rubbed her raisin-like fingers, noting how the deep wrinkles created by the basins of water were equivalent to deep trenches.

"Greeeat another thing for Henry to mock me about." Mai violently stuffed her hands in the pockets of her white gown and continued trekking to her room on the far end of the prohibited side of the Coventry. Thanks to that whole "women who have pledged themselves to God may not be seen by other men" rule Mai was forced to eat away from her comrades and sleep on the opposite side of the Coventry in order to keep up appearances. During the day she was free to flock amongst her equals, but at night she was prohibited from going anywhere near the Thieve boys.

_Stupid rules… what kind of girl do they think I am?!? _Mai's lip protruded ever so slightly as the full impact of this insult hit full force. _And Taichi just _had_ to agree to all of those conditions. I'm going to go crazy for crying out loud!! _

"Damn that bush-headed, sword-playing little swine!! While he's off partying in the city I'm stuck HERE."

If someone were to pick a few words to describe the beautiful, indigo-haired resident of the Coventry usually "short-tempered" would not be amongst the collection. In a nutshell Mai was sarcastic but an overall pleasure to be around. Definitely a glass half full kind of person. Of all the thieves residing in their temporary home Henry was amongst the very few who could get her blood boiling, so if any of them were to see her at that moment, screaming at the empty corridor, a double-take would probably be called for.

Mai continued scowling as she stormed through the empty hallway, "Idiot." In truth Mai was worried about her friend, although she'd never admit it aloud. Sure he could take care of himself better than, hell, just about _everyone_ thanks to all of his experience fending off the vermin of the world… but that didn't reassure her. Mai learned a long time ago that her instincts were usually right and had, on more than one occasion, saved her life. And on this bleak autumn night her disaster senses were tingling to a degree that made her want to go check up on all of her friends and make sure they weren't dangling from the rafters or some other catastrophe.

Oh how the urge plagued her! But that annoying little voice in the back of her mind -- the one that sounded suspiciously like Koushiro -- was scolding her fiercely.

"_Mai do you realize how many strings we had to pull to allow you to stay here? The Sisters were _not_ happy about it and are only complying to our request as a favor to Taichi and Yamato. Do you honestly want to throw their generosity back at their faces and wind up living on the streets again while your name is still on Ichijouji's most wanted?" _

Mai sighed, "No. Well… _not really _anyway." She owed far too much to those two already and refused to become another burden to their burdensome lives.

It was total coincidence that Mai had her run-in with the thieves in the first place, and, on many a night, she wondered in great depth what her life would've been like without their gentle guidance and loving support. _Probably halfway across the world on some sort of criminal ship. _she thought briefly.

Mai's first meeting with Taichi and Yamato occurred three days after her fifteenth birthday a little less than a year ago. She had been running from… something, although exactly what eluded her… Anyway she was fortunate enough to rush head-first into the mob of happy market-goers on that particularly crowded Saturday morning. With such a spectacular cover she was completely shielded from any enemies after her head, and apparently she wasn't the only one that thought so. Without watching where she was going she bumped into none other than the Prince of Thieves and his right hand man, although she was oblivious to who she was standing before at that time. She apologized and went about her way without another thought about the handsome strangers.

However, they were thinking about her.

Despite how transient their encounter was it lead to something more profound than any of them could have imagined. After they were formally introduced Mai realized just how much fate played into everything around her -- whether it's a smile shared between two people across a crowded room or a feeling experienced by two total strangers that gives off the feeling of mutual distaste towards the other, fate somehow puts them into the hand dealt to you. It is almost a guarantee that it will not be the last you've seen of them, even if its for only another split second. And Taichi and Yamato were living proof of that in Mai's eyes.

Mai blinked her eyes slowly as she finally came upon the short hallway where her room was located. Hm, maybe she wouldn't lose too much sleep after all. She approached the door to her room and rested her hand on the handle when a strange sound caught her attention. Well, strange wasn't exactly the right word… more like…. _unaccustomed_ to here in the Coventry.

It was the sound of metal scraping metal.

Mai's hand retreated from the knob and cautiously she turned around. This wasn't right, the Thieves had a room reserved for training on the other side of the Coventry with the rest of their rooms, and there was _no way _on hell or earth one of the sisters would wield a sword… well… at least she didn't _think_ --

"Hey Sora, I'm not supposed to be over here…."

"You're welcome to leave whenever it suites you Daisuke."

Mai visibly relaxed as she entered the door from which the voices were coming from. "What the hell are you two doing here?"

Daisuke literally jumped out of his seat and stumbled to grasp the back of the chair to right himself before he crashed to the floor. "M-Mai!! Hi!! Umm… fancy meeting you here…?"

Mai glanced over at Daisuke and sighed dramatically, "Get acting lessons Dais, you're not fooling anyone." Daisuke lowered his gaze into his lap, a light blush of embarrassment coating his cheeks. Mai blinked a few times in surprise, this was a very un-Daisukeish reaction to an innocent, teasing comment. It was then that Mai decided to take in the entire situation, and something was definitely…. off about her immature friend. She quietly approached him and knelt beside his chair, taking one of his hands into hers, "What's wrong love?"

Daisuke didn't answer, but even if he wanted to he would've been cut off by the reply coming from the irate Takenouchi princess standing a few steps away, sword in hand, slicing and stabbing at the sword placed beneath the arm of another chair -- a makeshift practice dummy. "He's upset because his precious friend _Taichi," _as she said his name she struck the chair with more ferocity than necessary, "returned under unexpected conditions and is now fighting with Mimi and Yamato."

Mai's eyes widened as she turned back to Daisuke, "Tai's back!? When?!"

"Not too long ago…" Daisuke mumbled quietly, eyes still averted towards his lap.

All of Mai's earlier troubles seemed to vanish as she jumped to her feet, dragging Daisuke with her, "That's great! God! When I get my hands on that hedgehog I swear I'm going to beat the living --" she trailed off suddenly when she noticed Daisuke had yet to cut in and add to their gruesome plot to kill their beloved friend. It was a game they played; whenever Taichi did something remarkably stupid -- even for him -- Daisuke and Mai would worry and fret until he returned home and then they would discuss how exactly they planned to get back at him… in great, gory detail. But here was her partner in crime not being…. crime-filled! "Dais?" She placed her hands on his shoulders and stared up at his face, "Dais? Are you okay? What's happened?"

Daisuke took a shuddering breath that racked his skinny frame, "It's all Takeru's fault!"

Mai blinked in surprise, "Takeru? Daisuke you know better than I that he's just kidding when he messes with you. It can't be that ba-- wait! Did he -- No!! He didn't find out about your secret longing to hold a certain lavend--"

Sora was fortunate enough to turn at that precise moment and witness one of those unforgettable moments; Daisuke slamming his hands over Mai's mouth with such force she flew backwards and landed on the floor with a loud "thud", but that's not all! One of her heels flew from her foot and knocked Daisuke squarely on his flushed face. The duo stared at one another for a moment as the shock settled in, then they promptly started giggling.

"I swear I don't know _how_ you manage a sword with _that_ type of hand-eye coordination." Mai grinned as she heaved herself onto her feet.

"Me!? You're the one who fell on her back!"

"After you pushed me you idiot!"

Sora watched with fascination as they continued to insult each other, but whilst venomous words left their tongues smiles remained frozen to their faces and spurts of laughter still kept them clinging to each other so they wouldn't collapse from the exhaustion their lungs and throats were feeling.

The young Takenouchi princess had never…. experienced anything like that. A friendship that was so odd that she could say the most hurtful words to the other but both would still be laughing… smiling. It was so… honest. Nothing was held back from the other even if it was hurtful or insulting; their mistakes, their triumphs, their laughs at their stupidity was all laid out for each of them to see and comment on.

Mimi was the closest she'd ever come to possessing that kind of friendship… but it was all a sick, ugly lie. Mimi had been hiding everything from her, so it made her wonder if anything she was led to believe was true either. Sure she forgave the beautiful young woman, but the wounds were still there… still trying to heal. And just as she felt she could take a look at her heart and only see the small scars of these wounds, they were reopened by a new face.

The Prince of Thieves's face.

She was such an idiot. Of all those masks floating around that day she thought she had found someone genuine, someone whose mask was only a costume prop and not a part of their identity like most of the nobles there that evening. Leave it to her, however, to find the one person whose entire identity was a mask. Ironic isn't it? She looked for something real and only succeeded in finding the most fake person there.

She wished more than anything that she could go back in time and stop herself from ever meeting him, to stop herself from ever feeling this.. this… she didn't even know _what_ she was feeling anymore! In one evening her entire world was flipped around and it all started with him. He's the one that filled her mind with thoughts about taking actions to help people instead of just being an idealist, and she had when Mimi and Yamato were in danger. She was such a fool! Why did she listen to him!? Why did she allow herself to feel things towards him that she hadn't felt in a long time; respect, gratitude, and.. there was always that one emotion she could never place a name to, but it was there. Bright and shining like a glowing star.

Why did she allow herself to trust someone she barely knew!?! But she knew the answer to this one already, whether she wanted to admit it or not...because she thought she _did_ know him. She felt such happiness, such warmth while she was with him, and then what did he do? Turn it into anger and fire. She hated him so much for taking those things from her. She hated him so much for everything he did to her. But most importantly she hated _Taichi_ for making her feel the way she did and then ripping it away like a band-aid; fast, but with a stinging after affect.

Sora's thoughts were interrupted when she felt a small hand gently caress the area beneath her eye. She blinked in surprise and her eyes were immediately drawn to the culprit; two large brown eyes stared back at her.

"Sora… are you okay?"

"I-I'm fine," she lied through her teeth. Running her hands over her cheeks to remove the tears she didn't even know were there, she quickly focused a small, forced smile at her new friend. "See? Never better."

Daisuke didn't look convinced, "Are you sure?"

Sora nodded with an over exaggerated happiness, "Very."

Mai, however, wasn't fooled. "Hey Dais, can you go check on Taichi for me?"

Daisuke seemed surprised about the sudden request, "Why?"

"You just told me that something was happening with Taichi you idiot! Now go find out what!"

"Why don't _you_ go? You've got two perfect legs!"

Mai fluttered her eyelashes playfully, "Why Daisuke I didn't think you'd noticed."

Daisuke groaned and slapped his hand over his eyes, hiding a portion of his blushing cheeks, "You know what I meant."

"That you've been staring at my legs, Daisuke you little perv! God, just wait until I tell Hen--"

"Your _boy_friend." Daisuke smirked. He chuckled madly as Mai clenched her fists by her sides. "No, no wait I apologize I forgot, _you_ don't _have_ boyfriends. So, by the way, how has your little boy toy been?" As soon as the words left his mouth he knew he was in for it, so, without giving Mai the chance to hit him… or worse, he ran out of the room as though his shoes caught fire.

"That's right Daisuke, you _better_ run you idiot!!" Mai called after him as she stopped her pursuit in the doorway, "I WILL have my revenge!!" She huffed as she slammed the doors shut, "Good riddance to the little punk." Mai's exterior slowly relaxed again and she walked back over to where Sora had continued mutilating her makeshift practice dummy. "So my dear, what's on your mind?"

"Nothing."

Mai smiled slightly as she leaned against the chair Sora continued thrashing, "Now, if Dais was the one who had said that I would have believed him, but you? Something's happened in the last few hours that is greatly troubling you, and don't," she raised a finger as Sora opened her mouth to respond, "try to deny it. This chair speaks for itself," she gently patted the back of the chair and smirked as it broke away from the seat and crashed to the ground. "Awww, such a waste, I believe this was French? Italian maybe? Lovely craftsmanship…or at least it _was_ before your temper got a hold of it." She smiled as she looked into Sora's burning eyes.

"It's nothing important," Sora snapped as she sheathed her blade.

"Oh? Then why's it got you so upset if it's not important?" Mai retaliated, silently thanking the gods that the temperamental auburn-haired princess had already put her sword away.

Sora glared at the persistent thief-in-disguise, "It's none of your business."

Mai placed a hand over her heart and grimaced, "Ouch, that blow went right to the heart." She smiled slightly as she positioned herself directly in front of her new source of amusement, "Alrighty, well let's see…. Obviously your anger is targeted at a specific person, a person, whom I'm guessing, is very close to Mimi since you're not with her right now sobbing out your sorrows. Whatever this person did affected you greatly in some way which is why you came all the way over here so you can think. Am I getting warm?"

Sora glared at her and abruptly turned away from the inquirer.

Mai smirked, "I should do this professionally. Oooh, so this is someone who is close to Mimi, has a knack for putting thoughts into peoples' heads, AND is, at this very moment, in the kitchens causing some sort of scene with the rest of the thieves! I believe he goes by the name of Tai--"

"Don't you _dare_," Sora whirled around to face the surprised young woman, "speak that name around me." Mai blinked a few times as she watched the Takenouchi princess's fury build and build behind her crimson eyes. "As far as I'm concerned that satanic monster that I had the displeasure of meeting is _dead_."

Mai didn't know how to respond to this, and she realized calling her a psychotic alien with some form of anti-social disease probably wasn't the best way to approach this…. She didn't know Sora very well, but maybe she could try comparing her to another thief and treat the situation the way she would in that circumstance.

Mai bit her lip as she gathered all her means of dealing with this problem; yelling, hitting things, going off somewhere to get her thoughts straight before directly dealing with the issue….. Oh. My. God.

"You're just like him!!" Mai cried before she could stop herself.

Sora's eyes darkened.

Wrong thing to say.

"You're comparing me to that heartless excuse for a human being!"

"Heartless?"

Sora unsheathed her sword and went back to stabbing what remained of the poor defenseless chair. Every now and then her thrusts would be a bit more violent and a bit more deadly. Mai was surprised that piece of furniture was still standing.

Okay, how would she handle this if Sora were Taichi….

….

……

Well this wasn't going to work! Why would Taichi be mad at himself!? Mai wanted to hit something.

Well ..teasing obviously hadn't worked… Maybe, and this was a long shot, she should try compassion. That's probably what Mimi would be doing, so she might as well give it a shot.

"Sora?"

"What?" the young woman snapped.

"I'm sorry, I… I don't do this often. You know… this whole…" she struggled with the word, "_nice_ thing." Mai, exasperated, plopped on the floor slightly away from the agitated young woman. "I guess that's what happens when you grow up alone… you don't learn how to treat people the way some deserve to be treated." Mai allowed her eyes to dart quickly over to Sora, who, she realized gleefully, was no longer violently destroying the chair. She made an effort to hide her triumphant grin as a statement similar to _what a sap! _entered her mind for the briefest of seconds. "Yep, I was orphaned as a baby and left the orphanage the moment I could walk. Went to a workhouse, then a shop, then the army… until they figured out I was a girl, and then I lived out the remainder of my petty childhood under a bridge with a stray cat I found." She sighed, "My joining the army, as a girl and all, placed me on Ichijouji's Most Wanted list for a long time, of course that was a little bit before Ta-- the _thieves_ became huge criminals, so I was hunted down mercilessly for a long time." Mai was pleased to note that she had Sora's undivided attention now; she was completely turned around and staring at her with a curious expression, no longer furious. "Then I met Taichi and Yamato, and since then I've been annoyed and irritated to a point where I'm ready to strangle someone!" She laughed, "But that's what families do, right?"

Sora mouth twitched as she fought back a smile of her own, "I suppose…."

Mai jumped to her feet and slung an arm around Sora's shoulders, "Come on love, what has our loveable leader done to you that would put you in such emotional distress?"

Sora glared at Mai's arm as if willing it to come off by the sheer force of her heated stare. Unfortunately for her, though, Mai wasn't one to be intimidated and Sora found the little voice in the back of her mind betraying her stubbornness.

_**This girl barely knows you! What kind of help could she possibly be?**_

_Maybe the kind you _need_. Don't you just want someone to listen to you? Someone who might not be able to help, but who can at least rid you of these terrible, plaguing emotions that drove you to slap him in the first place?_

Sora glanced once again at Mai's face where she found an exceptional amount of amusement -- which she wasn't surprised about at all, she could only imagine what her face must have looked like while she had her internal argument -- but also genuine concern for both her and Taichi. Maybe venting a little wouldn't cause too much grief for either of them….

"I met him at the ball--"

"How romantic!" Mai quickly shut her mouth at the look she received from the young Takenouchi heiress, "Sorry, please continue."

TTTTTTTTTTTTTT

_He felt so numb. _

_Those blank blue eyes. That mattered white blonde hair. _

_Already he felt his hands begin to shake, his eyes beginning to well with tears. _

_The blood… Oh God there was so much… _

_He dropped to his knees and relinquished his weapon, choosing instead to hug his torso as though he were afraid he was going to fall apart. _

"_I'm sorry… I'm so, so, so, _**so**_ sorry." _

_The boy laying next to him said nothing but continued to stare at the ceiling without any recognition or interest in his eyes. His sword was still clasped loosely in his hand, smeared with it's unique mixture of his own blood and the blood of the one who had the unfortunate experience of slaying him. _

_The _**monster**_ who killed him. The _**beast**_ that ended his life. _

_Not two hours ago were they chatting and laughing like old friends, each going into detail about their troubles and how they ended up where they were. He had a little brother and sister back home waiting for him. Waiting for him to come home with the money he earned and buy their freedom. _

_Only he would never come home. He would join the other hundreds of bodies outside waiting to be burned... _

"_Oh God…" the monster clutched his heart, feeling the life within his own body compared to the death in front of him. Claws began raking throughout his core, causing his whole body to shake as tears slipped down his face. "I didn't want to… Oh God, I…" he gripped his hair and sobbed in agony, "Why didn't you kill me when you had the chance! __**Why didn't you stop me!**__" _

"_Because, Taichi, you are unstoppable." Ken smiled satanically as he stood beside his slave, running his hand through his hair the way someone would with a pet. "Why do you weep for this one when you have killed so many others?" _

_Taichi didn't turn to meet Ken, "He didn't deserve to die." _

_Ken chuckled as he knelt beside the younger boy, gently pulling his chin toward him to meet his eyes, "But did he have the right to live?" Taichi's eyes narrowed but he remained silent. "People like yourself, Taichi, are insults to the human race. You say you don't deserve to die, but why should you live other than to serve your betters? And if your betters order you to die…" _

"_Is that my purpose in life as well Ken," Taichi snapped, "Live my life worshiping the ground you walk on until you order me to die!" _

_Ken's gaze hardened as he took the collar around Taichi's neck and hauled him to his feet. Once they were out of sight of the rows and rows of chairs occupied by other nobles Ken grasped Taichi's shoulders and slammed him against the black stone wall, "You are never to address me in such a manner _ever_ again, especially not in public." Ken's grip on Taichi's shoulders tightened, "You're lucky my father wasn't witness to that little outburst of yours, otherwise I'm sure you'd be on your back in agony at this very moment. He despises it when slaves mouth off to their superiors." _

"_You will _**never**_ be my superior Ken." Taichi hissed. _

_Ken's smirk returned as he tore the sleeve off of Taichi's shirt, ripping most of the collar off as well, "This scar of yours begs to differ," Taichi narrowed his eyes as Ken traced the letters he carved into his flesh, "__**slave**__."_

Pieces.

That's all that remained of him for the longest time. A pile of broken glass that had, at one point, portrayed a beautiful glass image…. but the color had long since faded, leaving only coldness and emptiness.

Those around him tried in vain to patch the pieces together, return their loving friend back to the way he was, but everyone who dared to touch the shattered mess would cut themselves on the sharp edges and drop the piece they were holding… only succeeding in adding to the blood-stained pieces.

After their escape, though, the different colors started to return. They remained faded and cold to the touch… but it was a start.

Every now and then in his search to repair his damaged soul he'd discover a jagged section of a long lost smile, or a small shard of the determination and fire his eyes once held. ….But it took a very long time for him to recover completely, despite the fake shell he built up to please those around him.

Eventually he was able to rebuild everything that made him who he was; reach into the scrap pile that represented his old life and pluck a glass-like piece from the rubble and glue it back into it's frame.

He would never be the same, but that in itself was bit of a relief; he was too naive, too trusting, too open to hurt… and he suffered for it.

Even now it appeared that these were still his greatest faults. His sensational belief that there was more good in the world than evil… you'd think he would've learned by now.

His trust, the one thing he refused to give out lightly (thanks to past circumstances), had once again been violated. He couldn't express in words just how much that violation killed him, possibly the only thing that hurt more was that the violation was committed by his best friends on the belief that he wouldn't let Sora stay.

He didn't believe a word of any of the excuses they presented to him about why they kept Sora's presence a secret. He could, if he squinted his eyes and turned his head upside down, _almost _understand where they were coming from when they decided to keep what was happening outside of their home from him, he would, after all, go off to try and right the wrongs. He let this excuse slide because he was certain it was true and it made some logic if, as he mentioned earlier, he stared at it long enough through squinted eyes. But it didn't make sense to him that they would use the same excuse to hide Sora from him.

For all they knew he was simply going to meet Mimi's best friend, who she was dying for him to meet a few weeks ago, and that she needed a place to stay after the raid incident. How could they possibly believe that was going to be stressful? The logic eluded him, but what _could_ have caused him stress was if he got angry over her presence. They were terrified that he was going to lash out at her because of her background or her _forced_ marriage to his most hated enemy!

The world thought he was a monster.

He knew what they said about him. But to discover that his friends thought the same thing…..

It was enough to make him want to gather up a small share of their fortune and leave the Coventry again… but never to return this time.

Yet there it was! That annoying voice in the back of his head chiding him for being so selfish. He couldn't leave! Not with so many people counting on him! So, muttering curses under his breath he would once again settle his mind and convince himself that he couldn't go anywhere yet. There was no way he could ever betray the trusts of the younger thieves who looked up to him and loved him. Taichi Kamiya had been called many things in his short seventeen years of life, but a hypocrite had never made the list and it wasn't about to.

Which was why he was here. Sitting in his room while Koushiro re-bandaged his arm, trying not to look at the two people he considered to be his best friends not twenty four hours ago, but whom he now felt wary of. He wasn't quite sure he was ready to face them yet…. He was still feeling the sting of betrayal and didn't want to meet the gazes of those that hurt him so deeply. Every so often, when he was sure they weren't looking, he would glance up to see their serene faces and his anger would boil again.

How could they be so calm?!? Why wasn't some form of emotion affecting them?! Did they not realize how deeply they wounded him today? Was there no guilt pulsing through their veins? No regret? No anger that he disagreed with them and stripped them of their titles? No… anything?! He wanted to hit something.

While he was sitting across from them, his emotions in a turmoil and his mind slowly slipping into a panic, they appeared as carefree and relaxed as children. Granted, they didn't yet know about Ken's newest plot and that was definitely putting a toll on his sanity, but he would've thought there would've been… something. After they ripped out a chunk of his heart you'd think something would've been visible on their faces!

Taichi felt his fists clench.

_**Please **__someone get me something that can cause severe bodily harm… _

…_.something preferable sharp and heavy… like a mace!… or a rock! Yea! A big rock that I can just throw at them! …Or beat against their heads!_

Taichi felt the corners of his mouth twitch upward.

"Can someone please tell us what the emergency is?"

The smile slipped as Taichi glanced in the direction of the two chairs, his irritation spiking.

"Koushiro, will you tell the furniture that I'm not certain I can trust them which is why I refuse to acknowledge them."

"The _furniture_ Taichi?"

"Yeees."

Koushiro grinned, "Which pieces?"

Taichi gave him a look, "Now whose being immature?"

Koushiro rolled his eyes, "I'm very sorry lovely lounge chairs, but Taichi doesn't trust you anymore. We'll have to send you to the scrap piles outside of town."

Taichi's mouth twitched into a small smile, "I refuse to have dastardly pieces of furniture amongst my peaceful home. We'll have to burn them Izzy, or risk exposure."

Yamato and Mimi glared at him after this comment was stated, and Taichi felt a twinge of satisfaction swell within his bosom. There was no way in hell he was capable of tormenting Mimi and Yamato enough to force them to feel the hurt that was burning within _his_ chest, but a little revenge never killed anyone. And after the blows he was dealt by the young couple sitting before him he believed he was more than justified in irritating them at least a bit.

They needed to know what Ken was planning. They _deserved_ to know, but there was always that little voice in the back of his mind muttering about how he should keep them in the dark the same way they kept him. It wasn't fair, a point which he knew through personal experience, but it would give him a small bud of happiness before blooming into guilt.

He slowly lifted his gaze to meet their eyes and saw what he expected to see on each of their faces; Mimi looked absolutely depressed, she hated it when anyone fought and she was personally kicking herself for being one of the causes of it all. She was sticking by her decision, but that didn't mean she didn't regretted the fight that spiraled out of control earlier. She was probably wishing she did more to prevent it.

Yamato was glaring at him with absolute defiance, as, Taichi realized, he would be if their roles were reversed. Yamato was about as stubborn as a thick block of ice, and just as cold towards anyone who tried to break down the defensive barrier. Yamato wasn't going to give in and apologize, there was a better chance of hell freezing over, but eventually the thoughts swarming around in his head would travel into his arms and legs and another fight would break out between them. It was their version of apologizing, and Taichi wouldn't have it any other way. Nothing screamed "I'm right" quite as loud as having your opponent at sword-tip.

"Taichi if this is as important as you're making it out to be couldn't you at least _try_ to act your age," Yamato asked with all of the coolness of a snow storm.

Taichi felt a bolt of adrenaline shoot through his body and for a moment he contemplated tackling the blonde, but Koushiro must've noted his obvious rigid-ness because he grasped the brunette's shoulder firmly with as much inconspicuousness as possible. "I could," Taichi voice suddenly lacked all of the playful mischief it contained just moments ago, "if you could _try_ to act like a friend?"

Ouch. Okay that was a bit below the belt, even Taichi realized it, but his eyes didn't lose their steely quality as the two rivals stared each other down.

The brunette realized that, normally, that would've been Yamato's cue to leave the room and march back into his quarters where he would sulk the rest of the night away, as was his habit, but tonight he was far too curious to know what could've upset Taichi enough to leave him in the mess that he was when he came in. The Prince of Thieves, who just minutes before had been flushed with fury and glowing with rage, had entered his room paler than a ghost and shaking so bad that he was gripping onto his shoulders like lifelines. He looked as though he were about to be violently ill and all life in his eyes appeared to be extinguished.

For the longest time he didn't speak as he sat against his headboard with his chin resting on his knees, but Yamato recognized the almost trance-like state the brunette was in; something had triggered a particularly foul memory locked up in the back of his mind. Yamato was dying to know what could've caused such a severe reaction in such a short amount of time, and his pride wasn't worth missing out on their new crisis.

Yamato calmly nodded his head as though accepting Taichi's prior statement, silently agreeing to continue this agrument at a later date, and the brunette, taking his cue, calmly lifted his gaze to meet the dark, calculating eyes of Koushiro and nodded slowly for him to repeat Jeri's information to the two other thieves.

Koushiro glanced at Taichi, nervousness overtaking him in an instance. Saying the information the first time was bad enough, but _repeating_ it? He caught Taichi's eye again but the brunette's decision didn't waver, and, mentally groaning, he took center stage and made the announcement, deciding that saying it quickly would be the easiest thing to do, like ripping off a bandage. "Jeri overheard Ken talk about killing the King."

Koushiro and Jyou watched Yamato and Mimi's reactions with great concern, each remembering Taichi's reaction earlier and not wanting an encore performance. Yamato's reaction was very similar to Taichi's, although, thankfully, not quite as severe; his already pale face gained an almost chalk-like appearance as what little pigmentation he had fled the scene. His eyes widened to the size of saucers and his grip on the arms of the chair tightened tenfold. In any other situation a joke about how "Mr. Cool" was losing his composure would've passed _someone's_ lips, but the situation was far too dire for even a breath of humor to pass amongst the thieves.

Mimi's reaction, like most of her mannerisms, was the polar opposite of Yamato's. She leapt from her seat and glared dangerously at Taichi, "Taichi Kamiya this is a **sick** way of making us regret what we did!"

"You think we're making this up!?"

"You always did have a thing for revenge."

Taichi snorted, "Yea, when I was _twelve_."

Mimi looked prepared to retort, but Yamato calmly took her hand in his from his standing position beside her, "It's not a joke Mimi." Yamato, unlike Mimi, had not been looking at Koushiro when the announcement was made but was staring directly at his best friend while the brunette stared back. If this was some cruel, sick joke he would be able to tell, as he was able to on many occasions, by directly staring into his friend's eyes. Taichi could never pull a prank on him without either laughing or smirking. Since neither action befell him at that moment Yamato immediately felt his stomach churn.

Within their short shared look they also came to an agreement, an understanding if you will about how important it was for their team to stay united during this imperative time. Their petty differences could wait… Now the three of them needed each other more than ever.

Mimi turned to Yamato and felt fear flutter within her breast, "I-It _has_ to be Yamato. Can you imagine…. Can you even consider what…. I mean without the King…"

Hikari slowly pulled the young woman into a hug as sobs overtook her. "Our cause will be lost," she finished quietly.

"…."

"…."

The silence amongst the group was deafening. A pin could've dropped on the opposite side of the Coventry and the group of seven would likely have heard it. No one could speak as visions of horror and carnage filled their troubled minds. Finally the visions were too much for some and someone had to break the impenetrable silence with the big sledgehammer question wandering through everyone's mind.

"What are we going to do?"

All heads turned towards Takeru, who, normally during their meetings, was very quiet and attentive, but here he was, taking the initiative to facing the nightmare none were eager to consider happening.

Another long moment of silence as all heads turned towards Taichi and Yamato, desperate for one of them to take the first step required to conquering this monstrous challenge.

After a few moments of hesitation Taichi opened his mouth to make a suggestion.

"Nothing."

All heads swerved away from their leader and landed on the far corner of the room. The response was made by Henry, who, up until that moment, no one had noticed was present. He slowly stepped out of the darkened corner and repeated his proclamation, "We do nothing." His dark eyes caught everyone's in the room for the briefest of moments and found that no one was showing any outward motion to agreeing with him, yet.

Mimi, whose sobs had stopped at the suggestion, turned to face him, panic in her eyes, "Nothing! We can't just sit back and do nothing! Henry do you understand what could happen if --"

"I'm very much aware Mimi, thank you." His acid reply was enough to quiet even Mimi's hysterical blubbering and she quietly returned to her seat.

"Elaborate Henry, I'm sure we're all curious of what you're suggesting."

"With pleasure Koushiro." Henry calmly entered into the ring of thieves, situating himself strategically beside Koushiro and Taichi -- the two he felt would see the most reason in his explanation. He slowly folded his hands below his chin and gazed intently at the white washed sheets of Taichi's bed before beginning, "My job in our organization, as you are all aware, is….to put it blatantly, to listen to people. It's… a personal hobby of mine as well, "he smiled briefly. "I love to listen to the people of Ichijouji to better understand what our actions look like to the "average" person. This skill of mine allows me to, in respect, speak _for_ the people, and although I'm sure you all get a taste of what they say when you leave the safety of your hideouts," he turned his gaze to Taichi briefly, "I'm not sure if any of you fully understand how teetering your popularity is at the moment."

He rose to his feet and walked over to the corner of the room, his actions obscured by his back, "There are two sides to every story; ours and theirs. What our actions mean to us and what they are perceived as by the people. But when you're trying to get _the people_ on _your_ side you need to make sure _your_ actions are perceived correctly." He twirled around to reveal that he was holding a chess board in his hands. "You've got the bad guys," he motioned to the black chess pieces, "and you've got us," he repeated his previous action with the white pieces. He plopped back down next to Taichi and Koushiro and moved the chess board on the bed so everyone could see it. "Alrighty! Well the way the people see it, we're vastly outnumbered and outmatched by the ever-superior Ichijouji army, but it's the overwhelming odds against us that grant us our respect. We are _doing something _to try and change the world even though there's a good chance that we will fail. But here we are, this rag-tag group of runaways and street rats, and we're aggravating the Ichijoujis to a point that they're resorting to drastic measures to do something to stop us. We're getting to them. This tiny rebellion against a huge destructive force like the Ichijouji army, and we're slowly gaining ground." He beamed at his companions, "That's pretty unbelievable, and the people have hope because of it."

He sighed, "But we made an error." He calmly picked up the white queen and placed her over with the black pieces. "There was another beacon of hope within the city; the marriage of Sora Takenouchi to Ken Ichijouji. Ms. Takenouchi's reputation reached the peoples' poor, decrepit ears and they realized that maybe she could influence the tyrannical methods of the Ichijouji politicians. With the Thieves working against the army and Sora working against the government the people believed that they finally had a chance! And they did…until we stepped in and took Sora from the castle."

Realization dawned on Mimi's face and she quickly assumed the expression of a fish; jaw opening and closing as she tried to formulate words. "B-But we took her to save her! T-They can't think that we--"

"Damnit Mimi!" Taichi glared at the brunette, "Why didn't you leave her with her family?!"

Mimi jumped to her feet, "You know very well why I couldn't just leave her there! She's my best friend!"

"Well your _best friend _could've helped us if she stayed in the castle where she belonged! What good will she be now that she's here?"

"She can fight Taichi, she can help us!"

"I _know_ she can fight Mimi! You don't think I _saw_ her!" He sighed exasperatedly and ran a hand through his hair, " Even though my memories are scrambled from that night I still get flashes now and then and I remember seeing her for a second, and although her skill needs some improvement she would be a great asset to our rebellion. But she would be of even greater help if she wasn't _here_." He calmly took the white queen from the black pieces and replaced it with the rest of her color. He sighed before turning back to Henry, "So you're suggesting we do nothing because if we go against Ken all of the support that we've gained over the years will be shot."

Henry nodded grimly. "Unfortunately you are correct my liege."

Taichi rubbed his temples slowly, "Izzy I need to know everything Jeri told you. I need to know if he mentioned anything about time or location, maybe there's a chance we can stall the inevitable for a little while longer." He paused for a moment, "On second thought, it might just be easier if I spoke to her personally… where is she?"

"Takato took her home."

Taichi's head snapped up as though he had been shot, "What?!"

Koushiro's eyebrows furrowed together at Taichi's reaction, "Jeri had been stopped by a soldier earlier that day when she forgot her purse at a cart. Takato was worried that if she disappeared for even a day they might become suspicious of her so he took her home. Why would --"

"How long ago did he take her home!?" Yamato demanded, rushing to join their conversation.

"A-About two hours ago… he should be back by now, now that I think about it…"

Parallel looks of horror crossed Taichi and Yamato's faces, but other than a spared moment to glance at one another no time was wasted.

"Shit!" Taichi leapt off of his bed and hit the ground running, Yamato directly on his heels thanks to his longer gait.

Their steps echoed through the corridors like a stampede. The many occupants of the Coventry faintly wondered if it was the sound of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse storming through their house of worship, for no mortal man could move so fast unless there was hot coal poured on their heels.

Yamato felt like tearing his hair out, which, this being _Yamato_, was indeed a sign of _extreme_ stress as he chanced a look at his friend. "I'm sure the King isn't waited by one servant alone, he used to have many at his disposal at all times of the day," Yamato murmured angrily. "If any of the other servants in the room thought it was odd that she found Ken's proposal terrifying --"

Taichi's determined eyes narrowed even further, "They'd tell someone."

Yamato returned his focus back to corridor stretching ahead of them, "Like another slave."

They skidded to a halt as Yamato ripped the door open and Taichi leapt over the stairs, landing in a slightly crouched position as he waited the few seconds it took for Yamato to land next to him. "Or a soldier," the brunette hissed.

Their feet practically flew off of the pavement as they hastened towards the houses across the street. "And said soldier might question her to confirm his suspicions," Yamato stated through gritted teeth as he vaulted towards the wall and scaled the broken bricks like a cat.

"And then, when his suspicions were found accurate," Taichi grasped Yamato's hand and the blonde pulled him onto the roof with enough momentum to allow the Prince of Thieves to waste no time in pulling himself up and continue racing across the rooftops, "he'd tell Ken."

The two young men bolted through the city but slowed considerably when clusters of soldiers started making themselves apparent. Taichi came to a halt and lowered himself to his knees as they closed in on Jeri's street. Yamato kneeled next to them and their eyes scanned the streets for any signs of trouble… but there was only silence.

Dead silence.

The type of silence that only enclosed an area before and after a great crime had been committed, and the duo were terrified it might've been the latter.

"Yamato… the lights are off in her house…"

TTTTTTTTTTTTT

**me**: _**OH MY FROG!!!! IT'S DONE!!!! **_You guys have NO idea how much of a relief it is to be done with this chapter XD. I'm so excited that I finally got to post it and I really hope you all LOVED it as much as I enjoyed writing it!!! Seriously!! The angstyness was like SO FUN!!! Since it's totally opposite of who I am, I got at play pretend XD!!!

Davis: You ARE mentally five!!!

Me: (*looks at him like he's an idiot*) Well YEA!!!! (*rolls eyes*) Anyhoo!! Please review!!! It's my favorite thing in the world to read your reviews!!! Seriously!! MORE THAN CAKE!!! Haha!

**LOVE YOU ALL!!!! **

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

**~*CS*~ **


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